10-K
1
f10k2020_avalonglobocare.htm
ANNUAL REPORT
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION
13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020
OR
☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO
SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE EXCHANGE ACT
Commission file number: 000-55709
(Name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware
47-1685128
(State or other jurisdiction of
(I.R.S. Employer
incorporation or organization)
Identification No.)
4400 Route 9 South, Suite 3100
Freehold, New Jersey 07728
732-780-4400
(Address of principal executive offices)
(Registrant’s telephone number)
SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b)
OF THE EXCHANGE ACT:
Title of each Class:
Trading Symbol
Name of Each Exchange
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share
AVCO
The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC
SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g)
OF THE EXCHANGE ACT:
None.
Indicate
by check mark if the Registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐
No ☒
Indicate
by check mark if the Registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate
by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports),
and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant
to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit
such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate
by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not
contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of Registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements
incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting
company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,”
“smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large
accelerated filer
☐
Accelerated
filer
☐
Non-accelerated
filer
☐
Smaller
reporting company
☒
Emerging
growth company
☐
If
an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for
complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s
assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
(15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒
As
of June 30, 2020, the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the market value
of our common stock held by non-affiliates was approximately $48,343,000.
The number of shares of the Registrant’s
common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, outstanding as of March 30, 2021, was 84,405,614.
Documents
incorporated by reference: NONE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I
Item 1.
Business
1
Item 1A.
Risk Factors
11
Item 1B.
Unresolved Staff Comments
35
Item 2.
Properties
35
Item 3.
Legal Proceedings
35
Item 4.
Mine Safety Disclosures
35
PART II
Item 5.
Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
36
Item 6.
Selected Financial Data
36
Item 7.
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
37
Item 7A.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
48
Item 8.
Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
48
Item 9.
Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
48
Item 9A.
Controls and Procedures
49
Item 9B.
Other Information
49
PART III
Item 10.
Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
50
Item 11.
Executive Compensation
57
Item 12.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
60
Item 13.
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
61
Item 14.
Principal Accounting Fees and Services
62
PART IV
Item 15.
Exhibits
63
Item 16.
Form 10-K Summary
66
Signatures
67
i
Forward-Looking Statements
CERTAIN STATEMENTS IN THIS ANNUAL REPORT
MAY CONSTITUTE “FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS”. WHEN THE WORDS “BELIEVES,” “EXPECTS,” “PLANS,”
“PROJECTS,” “ESTIMATES” AND SIMILAR EXPRESSIONS ARE USED, THEY IDENTIFY FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. THESE
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE BASED ON MANAGEMENT’S CURRENT BELIEFS AND ASSUMPTIONS AND INFORMATION CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
TO MANAGEMENT AND INVOLVE KNOWN AND UNKNOWN RISKS, UNCERTAINTIES AND OTHER FACTORS WHICH MAY CAUSE THE ACTUAL RESULTS, PERFORMANCE
OR ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE COMPANY TO BE MATERIALLY DIFFERENT FROM ANY FUTURE RESULTS, PERFORMANCE OR ACHIEVEMENTS EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED
BY THESE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. INFORMATION CONCERNING FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE OUR ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM
THESE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS CAN BE FOUND IN OUR PERIODIC REPORTS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION. WE UNDERTAKE
NO OBLIGATION TO PUBLICLY RELEASE REVISIONS TO THESE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS TO REFLECT FUTURE EVENTS OR CIRCUMSTANCES OR REFLECT
THE OCCURRENCE OF UNANTICIPATED EVENTS.
Unless otherwise indicated, references
to “we,” “us,” “our,” “Company,” or “Avalon” mean Avalon GloboCare
Corp. and its subsidiaries, and references to “fiscal” mean the Company’s fiscal year ended December 31. References
to the “parent company” mean Avalon GloboCare Corp.
ii
PART I
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Overview
The Company is a
clinical-stage, vertically integrated, leading CellTech bio-developer dedicated to advancing and empowering innovative, transformative
immune effector cell therapy, exosome technology, as well as COVID-19 related diagnostics and therapeutics. The Company also provides
strategic advisory and outsourcing services to facilitate and enhance its clients’ growth and development, as well as competitiveness
in healthcare and CellTech industry markets. Through its subsidiary structure with unique integration of verticals from innovative
R&D to automated bioproduction and accelerated clinical development, the Company is establishing a leading role in the fields
of cellular immunotherapy (including CAR-T/NK), exosome technology (ACTEX™), and COVID-19 related vaccine and therapeutics.
Avalon achieves and
fosters seamless integration of unique verticals to bridge and accelerate innovative research, bio-process development, clinical
programs and product commercialization. Avalon’s upstream innovative research includes:
●
Development of Avalon Clinical-grade Tissue-specific Exosome (“ACTEX™”)
●
Novel therapeutic and diagnostic targets development utilizing QTY-code protein design technology with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) including using the QTY code protein design technology for development of a hemofiltration device to treat Cytokine Storm.
●
Co-development of next generation, transposon-based, multi-target CAR-T, CAR-NK and other immune effector cell therapeutic modalities with Arbele Limited.
●
Strategic partnership with the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) in Vienna, Austria to develop an S-layer vaccine that can be administered by an intranasal or oral route against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 disease.
Avalon’s midstream
bio-processing and bio-production facility is located in Nanjing, China with state-of-the-art, automated GMP and QC/QA infrastructure
for standardized bio-manufacturing of clinical-grade cellular products involved in our clinical programs in immune effector cell
therapy, regenerative therapeutics, as well as bio-banking.
Avalon’s downstream
medical team and facility consists of top-rated affiliated hospital network and experts specialized in hematology, oncology, cellular
immunotherapy, hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell transplant, as well as regenerative therapeutics. Our major clinical programs
include:
●
AVA-001: Avalon has initiated its first-in-human clinical trial of CD19 CAR-T candidate, AVA-001 in August 2019 at the Hebei Yanda Lu Daopei Hospital and Beijing Lu Daopei Hospital in China (the world’s single largest CAR-T treatment network with over 600 patients being treated with CAR-T) for the indication of relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. The AVA-001 candidate (co-developed with China Immunotech Co. Ltd) is characterized by the utilization of 4-1BB (CD137) co-stimulatory signaling pathway, conferring a strong anti-cancer activity during pre-clinical study. It also features a shorter bio-manufacturing time which leads to the advantage of prompt treatment to patients where timing is important related hematologic malignancies. Avalon has successfully completed the first-in-human clinical trial of its AVA-001 anti-CD19 CAR-T cell therapy as a bridge to allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Lu Daopei Hospital (registered clinical trial number NCT03952923) with excellent efficacy (90% complete remission rate) and minimal adverse side effects. Avalon is currently expanding the patient recruitment for AVA-001 to include relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients.
1
●
ACTEX™: Stem cell-derived Avalon Clinical-grade Tissue-specific Exosomes (ACTEX™) is one of the core technology platforms that has been co-developed by Avalon GloboCare and Weill Cornell Medicine. The Company formed a strategic partnership with HydroPeptide, LLC, a leading epigenetics skin care company, to engage in co-development and commercialization of a series of clinical-grade, exosome-based cosmeceutical and orthopedic products. As part of this agreement, the Company signed a three-way Material Transfer Agreement between Avalon GloboCare, HydroPeptide and Weill Cornell Medicine.
●
FLASH-CAR™: The Company advanced its next generation immune cell therapy using RNA-based, non-viral FLASH-CAR™ technology co-developed with the Company’s strategic partner Arbele Limited. The adaptable FLASH-CAR™ platform can be used to create personalized cell therapy from a patient’s own cells, as well as off-the-shelf cell therapy from a universal donor. Our leading candidate, AVA-011, is currently at process development stage to generate clinical-grade cell-therapy products for subsequent clinical studies.
●
AVA-Trap™: Avalon’s AVA-Trap™ therapeutic program plans to enter animal model testing followed by expedited clinical studies with the goal of providing an effective therapeutic option to combat COVID-19 and other life-threatening conditions involving cytokine storms. The Company initiated a sponsored research and co-development project with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) led by Professor Shuguang Zhang as Principal Investigator in May 2019. Using the unique QTY code protein design platform, six water-soluble variant cytokine receptors have been successfully designed and tested to show binding affinity to the respective cytokines.
For the
year ended December 31, 2020 we generated revenue by providing medical related consulting services in advanced areas of immunotherapy
and second opinion/referral services through our wholly-owned subsidiary Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd., or Avalon
Shanghai. We also own and operate rental commercial real property in New Jersey, where we are headquartered. We discontinued sales of
exosome isolation systems in China and the US through our joint venture Genexosome Technologies, Inc.
COVID-19
has not significantly impacted Company operations or the work performed as part of our clinical trials in China. The clinical trials are
being conducted at Hebei Yanda Lu Daopei Hospital and Beijing Lu Daopei Hospital. Both hospitals are considered primarily hematology specialty
hospitals and experienced minor disruption as part of the pandemic.
Corporate Information/Company History
We were incorporated under
the laws of the State of Delaware on July 28, 2014 under the name Global Technologies Corp. On October 18, 2016, we changed our
name to Avalon GloboCare Corp. and completed a reverse split of our shares of common stock at a ratio of 1:4.
We own 100% of the capital
stock of Avalon Healthcare Systems, Inc., a Delaware corporation, or AHS, which we acquired on October 19, 2016. AHS was incorporated
on May 18, 2015 under the laws of the State of Delaware. In addition, we own through AHS 100% of the capital stock of Avalon (Shanghai)
Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd., or Avalon Shanghai, which is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise, or WOFE, organized under the laws
of the People’s Republic of China, or PRC or China. Avalon Shanghai was incorporated on April 29, 2016 and is engaged in
medical related consulting services for customers. On January 23, 2017, we incorporated Avalon (BVI) Ltd, a British Virgin Islands
company (dormant and in process of being dissolved). On February 7, 2017, we formed Avalon RT 9 Properties, LLC, a New Jersey limited
liability company. In July 2017, we formed Genexosome Technologies Inc., a Nevada corporation, or Genexosome. Effective October
25, 2017, Genexosome owns 100% of the capital stock of Beijing Jieteng (Genexosome) Biotech Co., Ltd., a corporation incorporated
in the People’s Republic of China on August 7, 2015 (“Beijing Genexosome”), and the Company holds 60% of Genexosome
and Dr. Yu Zhou holds 40% of Genexosome. Beijing Genexosome is engaged in providing development services and selling developed
items to customers in China.
On May 29, 2018, Avalon
Shanghai entered into a Joint Venture Agreement with Jiangsu Unicorn Biological Technology Co., Ltd., or Unicorn, pursuant to
which a company named Epicon Biotech Co., Ltd. (“Epicon”) was formed on August 14, 2018. Epicon is owned 60% by Unicorn
and 40% by Avalon Shanghai. Within five years of execution of the Joint Venture Agreement, Unicorn shall invest cash into Epicon
in an amount not less than RMB 8,000,000 (approximately $1.2 million) and the premises of the laboratories of Nanjing Hospital
of Chinese Medicine for exclusive operation by Epicon, and Avalon Shanghai shall invest cash into Epicon in an amount not less
than RMB 10,000,000 (approximately $1.5 million). The board of directors of Epicon shall consist of five members with Unicorn
appointing three members and Avalon Shanghai appointing two members. As of December 31, 2020, Unicorn has invested the premises
of the laboratories of Nanjing BENQ hospital as GMP level research and manufacture facility and Avalon Shanghai has contributed
RMB 4,500,000 (approximately $0.7 million). Epicon is focused on cell preparation, third party testing, biological sample repository
for commercial and scientific research purposes and the clinical transformation of scientific achievements.
2
On July 18, 2018, we formed
a wholly owned subsidiary, Avactis Biosciences Inc. (“Avactis”), a Nevada corporation, which will be focused on accelerating
commercial activities related to cellular therapies, including regenerative medicine with stem/progenitor cells as well as cellular
immunotherapy including CAR-T, CAR-NK, TCR-T and others. The subsidiary is designed to integrate and optimize our global scientific
and clinical resources to further advance the use of cellular therapies to treat certain cancers. On October 23, 2018, Avactis
and Arbele Limited (“Arbele”) agreed to the establishment of AVAR BioTherapeutics (China) Co. Ltd. (“AVAR”),
a Sino-foreign equity joint venture, pursuant to an Equity Joint Venture Agreement (the “AVAR Agreement”), which will
be owned 60% by Avactis and 40% by Arbele. The purpose and business scope of the Joint Venture is to research, develop, produce,
sell, distribute and generally commercialize CAR-T/CAR-NK/TCR-T/universal cellular immunotherapy in China. Avactis is required
to contribute USD $10 million (or equivalent in RMB) in cash and/or services, which shall be contributed in tranches
based on milestones to be determined jointly by AVAR and Avactis in writing subject to Avactis’ cash reserves. Within 30
days, Arbele shall make contribution of USD $6.66 million in the form of entering into a License Agreement with AVAR granting AVAR
with an exclusive right and license in China to its technology and intellectual property pertaining to CAR-T/CAR-NK/TCR-T/universal
cellular immunotherapy technology and any additional technology developed in the future with terms and conditions to be mutually
agreed upon Avactis and AVAR and services. As of the date hereof, the License Agreement has not been finalized.
The following diagram illustrates
our corporate structure:
Sales and Marketing
We seek to develop new
business through relationships driven by our senior management, which have extensive contacts throughout the healthcare system.
Our senior management will be seeking opportunities for joint ventures, strategic relationships and acquisitions in consulting,
biomedical innovations, and telemedicine, and rehabilitation centers.
Services
We currently generate
revenue from related party strategic relationships through Avalon Shanghai that provide consultative services in advanced areas
of immunotherapy and second opinion/referral services. In addition, our services are targeted at serving our clients and using
our insights and deep expertise to produce tangible and significant results. Our services include research studies, executive
education, daily online executive briefings, tailored expert advisory services, and consulting and management services. We typically
charge an annual fee. Through our services, we attempt to have our clients focus on important problems by providing an analysis
of the evolving healthcare industry and the methods prevalent in the industry to solve those problems through counsel, business
planning and support. We tailor these solutions to the client’s specific strategic challenges, operational issues, and management
concerns. We plan to expand our business services throughout the United States via our “Technology + Service” platform:
“Avalon Cell”.
3
Strategic Partnerships and Acquisitions
We are actively seeking
potential strategic partnerships in our area of focus. In addition, we are actively seeking target acquisitions that add accretive
value to our strategic plan. There is no guarantee that we will be able to successfully sign a definitive agreement, close or implement
such business arrangement.
Markets
We will focus on the following
markets in developing our core business:
Platform “Avalon
Cell”
Regarded as the future
of medicine, we believe cell-based therapeutics will replace pharmaceuticals as a more effective and functional modality in disease
treatment. We are actively engaging in this revolutionary trend and positioning to take a leading role in cell-based technology
and therapeutics. The business model for our “Avalon Cell” platform is based on stringent criteria in the selection
and evaluation of candidate projects at different stages of their developmental cycle. We particularly focus on projects that have
strong intellectual property and distinctive innovation, as well as being translational, application-driven, and commercialization-ready.
Our technology-based platform, “Avalon Cell”, comprises four programs:
● Novel therapeutic and diagnostic targets development utilizing
QTY-code protein design technology with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) including using the QTY code protein design
technology for development of a hemofiltration device to treat Cytokine Storm.
● Co-development of next generation, transposon-based, multi-target
CAR-T, CAR-NK and other immune effector cell therapeutic modalities with Arbele Limited.
● Strategic partnership with the University
of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) in Vienna, Austria to develop an S-layer vaccine that can be administered by an intranasal
or oral route against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 disease.
●
Exosome technology, small extracellular vesicles that have great potential to be used in diagnostics (“liquid biopsy”) and regenerative therapeutics. We have commenced developing collaborative sites at Weill Cornell Medical College in the United States, as well as Lu Daopei Hospital of Daopei Medical Group and Da An Gene Co, Ltd. in China, focusing on exosome-based diagnostics and therapeutics.
Revenue
Avalon RT 9 Properties,
LLC
In May 2017, we acquired
commercial property located in Freehold, New Jersey. This property is now our corporate headquarters and contains several commercial
tenants that generate revenue through rental income.
Avalon Shanghai
We currently generate revenue
by providing medical related consulting services in advanced areas of immunotherapy and second opinion/referral services through
Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd., or Avalon Shanghai. Our medical related consulting services include research
studies, executive education, daily online executive briefings, tailored expert advisory services, and consulting and management
services. Through our services we attempt to have our clients focus on important problems by providing an analysis of the evolving
healthcare industry and the methods prevalent in the industry to solve those problems through counsel, business planning and support.
The revenue generated from our related parties in China is managed by our employees residing in China and contactors who are retained
as needed. Consulting services have been provided by Avalon Shanghai under the contract include:
●
providing scientific research consulting services;
●
integrating experts, medical institutions and other resources in the United States in support of scientific research;
●
providing technical education and training; and
●
assisting in publication of academic papers.
4
Strategic Development
We intend to pursue the
acquisition and development of healthcare related technologies for cell related diagnostics and therapeutics through acquisition,
licensing or joint ventures with major universities and biotech companies. We will also consider a third avenue of investing in
certain technologies for cell related diagnostics and therapeutics.
Genexosome Technologies,
Inc.
Through our majority-owned subsidiary, Genexosome Technologies,
Inc., or Genexosome, during certain periods of 2019, marketed and sold our proprietary exosome isolation systems. Exosomes are
small extracellular vesicles that we believe may be used as a vehicle for drug delivery in the treatment of various diseases, and
biomarkers for early stage diagnosis and as enhancements to certain cosmetic treatments and procedures. We discontinued sales of
exosome isolation systems in China and the US through our joint venture Genexosome Technologies, Inc. Feedback received from our
research partners is that our exosome isolation systems did not produce consistent results and did not deliver high exosome yields
and concentrations.
Intellectual Property
Our goal is to obtain,
maintain and enforce patent rights for our products, formulations, processes, methods of use and other proprietary technologies,
preserve our trade secrets, and operate without infringing on the proprietary rights of other parties, both in the United States
and abroad. Our policy is to actively seek to obtain, where appropriate, the broadest intellectual property protection possible
for our current product candidates and any future product candidates, proprietary information and proprietary technology through
a combination of contractual arrangements and patents, both in the United States and abroad. Even patent protection, however, may
not always afford us with complete protection against competitors who seek to circumvent our patents. If we fail to adequately
protect or enforce our intellectual property rights or secure rights to patents of others, the value of our intellectual property
rights would diminish. To this end, we require all of our employees, consultants, advisors and other contractors to enter into
confidentiality agreements that prohibit the disclosure and use of confidential information and, where applicable, require disclosure
and assignment to us of the ideas, developments, discoveries and inventions relevant to our technologies and important to our business.
Competition
Avalon Shanghai
In our current consulting
business in the People’s Republic of China, or PRC or China, we compete with a number of advisory firms offering similar
service including consulting and strategy firms; market research, data, benchmarking, and forecasting providers; technology vendors
and services firms; healthcare information technology firms; technology advisory firms; outsourcing firms; and specialized providers
of educational and training services. Other organizations, such as state and national trade associations, group purchasing organizations,
non-profit think-tanks, and database companies, also may offer research, consulting, tools, and education services to health care
and education organizations.
We believe that the principal
competitive factors in our market include quality and timeliness of our services, strength and depth of relationships with our
clients, ability to meet the changing needs of current and prospective clients, measurable returns on customer investment, and
service and affordability.
As our business develops
and we expand through joint ventures, acquisitions and strategic partnerships in the U.S. and PRC, we will have competition with
other direct service providers, emerging technologies and medical communication platforms. We will seek to maintain a competitive
advantage through intellectual property, superior quality management and cutting-edge technology.
Avalon RT 9 Properties
LLC
Our executive commercial
building in Freehold, New Jersey is located on a major highway and is one of the largest buildings in the surrounding areas. It
is centrally located and maintains high occupancy. There are other commercial properties in the vicinity that offer similar amenities.
However, premier executive offices are limited and as such we expect to continue to maintain high occupancy in the near term.
Genexosome Technologies,
Inc.
We discontinued sales
of exosome isolation systems in China and the US through our joint venture Genexosome Technologies, Inc. Feedback received from
our research partners is that our exosome isolation systems did not produce consistent results and did not deliver high exosome
yields and concentrations. There are other companies that produce exosome isolation systems.
5
Employees
As of March 29, 2021, we
employed eight employees, six of which are full time employees. None of our employees are represented by a collective bargaining
arrangement.
Government Regulation
Overview
The healthcare industry
in the PRC and U.S. is highly regulated and subject to changing political, legislative, regulatory, and other influences. Further,
the healthcare industry is currently undergoing rapid change. We are uncertain how, when or in what context these new changes will
be adopted or implemented. These new regulations could create unexpected liabilities for us, could cause us or our members to incur
additional costs and could restrict our or our clients’ operations. Many of the laws are complex and their application to
us, our clients, or the specific services and relationships we have with our members are not always clear. Our failure to anticipate
accurately the application of these laws and regulations, or our other failure to comply, could create liability for us, result
in adverse publicity, and otherwise negatively affect our business.
Despite efforts to develop
its legal system over the past several decades, including but not limited to legislation dealing with economic matters such as
foreign investment, corporate organization and governance, commerce, taxation and trade, the PRC continues to lack a comprehensive
system of laws. Further, the laws that do exist in the PRC are often vague, ambiguous and difficult to enforce, which could negatively
affect our ability to do business in China and compete with other companies in our segments.
In September 2006, the
Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, promulgated the Regulations on Foreign Investors’ Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises,
or the M&A Regulations, in an effort to better regulate foreign investment in the PRC. The M&A Regulations were adopted
in part as a needed codification of certain joint venture formation and operating practices, and also in response to the government’s
increasing concern about protecting domestic companies in perceived key industries and those associated with national security,
as well as the outflow of well-known trademarks, including traditional Chinese brands.
As a U.S. based company
doing business in the PRC, we seek to comply with all PRC laws, rules and regulations and pronouncements, and endeavor to obtain
all necessary approvals from applicable PRC regulatory agencies such as the MOFCOM, the State Assets Supervision and Administration
Commission, the State Administration for Taxation, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the China Securities Regulatory
Commission, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE.
Drug
Approval Process
The research, development,
testing, manufacture, labeling, promotion, advertising, distribution and marketing, among other things, of our product candidates
are extensively regulated by governmental authorities in the United States and other countries. In the United States, the FDA regulates
drugs under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or the FDCA, and its implementing regulations. Failure to comply with the
applicable U.S. requirements may subject us to administrative or judicial sanctions, such as the FDA’s refusal to approve
a pending new drug application, or NDA, or a pending biologics license application, or BLA, warning letters, product recalls, product
seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions and/or criminal prosecution.
6
Pharmaceutical products
such as ours may not be commercially marketed without prior approval from the FDA and comparable regulatory agencies in other countries.
In the United States, the process to receiving such approval is long, expensive and risky, and includes the following steps:
●
pre-clinical laboratory tests, animal studies, and formulation studies;
●
submission to the FDA of an IND for human clinical testing, which must become effective before human clinical trials may begin;
●
adequate and well-controlled human clinical trials to establish the safety and efficacy of the drug for each indication;
●
submission to the FDA of an NDA or BLA;
●
satisfactory completion of an FDA inspection of the manufacturing facility or facilities at which the drug is produced to assess compliance with current good manufacturing practices, or cGMPs;
●
a potential FDA audit of the preclinical and clinical trial sites that generated the data in support of the NDA or BLA;
●
the ability to obtain clearance or approval of companion diagnostic tests, if required, on a timely basis, or at all; and
●
FDA review and approval of the NDA or BLA.
Regulation by U.S. and
foreign governmental authorities is a significant factor affecting our ability to commercialize any of our products, as well as
the timing of such commercialization and our ongoing research and development activities. The commercialization of drug products
requires regulatory approval by governmental agencies prior to commercialization. Various laws and regulations govern or influence
the research and development, non-clinical and clinical testing, manufacturing, processing, packing, validation, safety, labeling,
storage, record keeping, registration, listing, distribution, advertising, sale, marketing and post-marketing commitments of our
products. The lengthy process of seeking these approvals, and the subsequent compliance with applicable laws and regulations, require
expending substantial resources.
The results of pre-clinical
testing, which include laboratory evaluation of product chemistry and formulation, animal studies to assess the potential safety
and efficacy of the product and its formulations, details concerning the drug manufacturing process and its controls, and a proposed
clinical trial protocol and other information must be submitted to the FDA as part of an IND that must be reviewed and become effective
before clinical testing can begin. The study protocol and informed consent information for patients in clinical trials must also
be submitted to an independent Institutional Review Board, or IRB, for approval covering each institution at which the clinical
trial will be conducted. Once a sponsor submits an IND, the sponsor must wait 30 calendar days before initiating any clinical trials.
If the FDA has comments or questions within this 30-day period, the issue(s) must be resolved to the satisfaction of the FDA before
clinical trials can begin. In addition, the FDA, an IRB or the company may impose a clinical hold on ongoing clinical trials due
to safety concerns. If the FDA imposes a clinical hold, clinical trials can only proceed under terms authorized by the FDA. Our
pre-clinical and clinical studies must conform to the FDA’s Good Laboratory Practice, or GLP, and Good Clinical Practice,
or GCP, requirements, respectively, which are designed to ensure the quality and integrity of submitted data and protect the rights
and well-being of study patients. Information for certain clinical trials also must be publicly disclosed within certain time limits
on the clinical trial registry and results databank maintained by the NIH.
7
Typically, clinical testing
involves a three-phase process; however, the phases may overlap or be combined:
●
Phase I clinical trials typically are conducted in a small number of volunteers or patients to assess the early tolerability and safety profile, and the pattern of drug absorption, distribution and metabolism;
●
Phase II clinical trials typically are conducted in a limited patient population with a specific disease in order to assess appropriate dosages and dose regimens, expand evidence of the safety profile and evaluate preliminary efficacy; and
●
Phase III clinical trials typically are larger scale, multicenter, well-controlled trials conducted on patients with a specific disease to generate enough data to statistically evaluate the efficacy and safety of the product, to establish the overall benefit-risk relationship of the drug and to provide adequate information for the registration of the drug.
A therapeutic product candidate
being studied in clinical trials may be made available for treatment of individual patients, in certain circumstances. Pursuant
to the 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act), which was signed into law in December 2016. The manufacturer of an investigational product
for a serious disease or condition is required to make available, such as by posting on its website, its policy on evaluating and
responding to requests for individual patient access to such investigational product.
The results of the pre-clinical
and clinical testing, chemistry, manufacturing and control information, proposed labeling and other information are then submitted
to the FDA in the form of either an NDA or BLA for review and potential approval to begin commercial sales. In responding to an
NDA or BLA, the FDA may grant marketing approval, request additional information in a Complete Response Letter, or CRL, or deny
the approval if it determines that the NDA or BLA does not provide an adequate basis for approval. A CRL generally contains a statement
of specific conditions that must be met in order to secure final approval of an NDA or BLA and may require additional testing.
If and when those conditions have been met to the FDA’s satisfaction, the FDA will typically issue an approval letter, which
authorizes commercial marketing of the product with specific prescribing information for specific indications, and sometimes with
specified post-marketing commitments and/or distribution and use restrictions imposed under a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy
program. Any approval required from the FDA might not be obtained on a timely basis, if at all.
Among the conditions for
an NDA or BLA approval is the requirement that the manufacturing operations conform on an ongoing basis with cGMPs. In complying
with cGMPs, we must expend time, money and effort in the areas of training, production and quality control within our own organization
and at our contract manufacturing facilities. A successful inspection of the manufacturing facility by the FDA is usually a prerequisite
for final approval of a pharmaceutical product. Following approval of the NDA or BLA, we and our manufacturers will remain subject
to periodic inspections by the FDA to assess compliance with cGMPs requirements and the conditions of approval. We will also face
similar inspections coordinated by foreign regulatory authorities.
Disclosure of Clinical
Trial Information
Sponsors of certain clinical
trials of FDA-regulated products are required to register and disclose certain clinical trial information. Information related
to the product, patient population, phase of investigation, trial sites and investigators, and other aspects of the clinical trial
are then made public as part of the registration. Sponsors are also obligated to disclose the results of their clinical trials
after completion. Disclosure of the results of these trials can be delayed in certain circumstances for up to two years after the
date of completion of the trial. Competitors may use this publicly available information to gain knowledge regarding the progress
of development programs.
Expedited Development
and Review Programs
The FDA has a Fast Track
program that is intended to expedite or facilitate the process for reviewing new drugs and biological products that meet certain
criteria. Specifically, new drugs and biological products are eligible for Fast Track designation if they are intended to treat
a serious or life-threatening condition and demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs for the condition. Fast Track
designation applies to the combination of the product and the specific indication for which it is being studied. The sponsor of
a new drug or biologic may request the FDA to designate the drug or biologic as a Fast Track product at any time during the clinical
development of the product. Unique to a Fast Track product, the FDA may consider for review sections of the marketing application
on a rolling basis before the complete application is submitted, if the sponsor provides a schedule for the submission of the sections
of the application, the FDA agrees to accept sections of the application and determines that the schedule is acceptable, and the
sponsor pays any required user fees upon submission of the first section of the application.
Any product submitted
to the FDA for marketing, including under a Fast Track program, may be eligible for other types of FDA programs intended to expedite
development and review, such as priority review and accelerated approval. Under the Breakthrough Therapy program, products intended
to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition may be eligible for the benefits of the Fast Track program when preliminary
clinical evidence demonstrates that such product may have substantial improvement on one or more clinically significant endpoints
over existing therapies. Additionally, FDA will seek to ensure the sponsor of a breakthrough therapy product receives timely advice
and interactive communications to help the sponsor design and conduct a development program as efficiently as possible. Any product
is eligible for priority review if it has the potential to provide safe and effective therapy where no satisfactory alternative
therapy exists or a significant improvement in the treatment, diagnosis or prevention of a disease compared to marketed products.
The FDA will attempt to direct additional resources to the evaluation of an application for a new drug or biological product designated
for priority review in an effort to facilitate the review. Additionally, a product may be eligible for accelerated approval. Drug
or biological products studied for their safety and effectiveness in treating serious or life-threatening illnesses and that provide
meaningful therapeutic benefit over existing treatments may receive accelerated approval, which means that they may be approved
on the basis of adequate and well-controlled clinical studies establishing that the product has an effect on a surrogate endpoint
that is reasonably likely to predict a clinical benefit, or on the basis of an effect on a clinical endpoint other than survival
or irreversible morbidity. As a condition of approval, the FDA may require that a sponsor of a drug or biological product receiving
accelerated approval perform adequate and well-controlled post-marketing clinical studies. In addition, the FDA currently requires
as a condition for accelerated approval the pre-approval of promotional materials, which could adversely impact the timing of
the commercial launch of the product. Fast Track designation, Breakthrough Therapy designation, priority review and accelerated
approval do not change the standards for approval but may expedite the development or approval process.
8
Regenerative Medicine
Advanced Therapies (RMAT) Designation
The FDA has established
a Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy, or RMAT, designation as part of its implementation of the 21st Century Cures Act, or
Cures Act. The RMAT designation program is intended to fulfill the Cures Act requirement that the FDA facilitate an efficient development
program for, and expedite review of, any drug that meets the following criteria: (1) it qualifies as a RMAT, which is defined as
a cell therapy, therapeutic tissue engineering product, human cell and tissue product, or any combination product using such therapies
or products, with limited exceptions; (2) it is intended to treat, modify, reverse, or cure a serious or life-threatening disease
or condition; and (3) preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug has the potential to address unmet medical needs for
such a disease or condition. Like breakthrough therapy designation, RMAT designation provides potential benefits that include more
frequent meetings with FDA to discuss the development plan for the product candidate, and eligibility for rolling review and priority
review. Products granted RMAT designation may also be eligible for accelerated approval on the basis of a surrogate or intermediate
endpoint reasonably likely to predict long-term clinical benefit, or reliance upon data obtained from a meaningful number of sites,
including through expansion to additional sites. RMAT-designated products that receive accelerated approval may, as appropriate,
fulfill their post-approval requirements through the submission of clinical evidence, clinical studies, patient registries, or
other sources of real world evidence (such as electronic health records); through the collection of larger confirmatory data sets;
or via post-approval monitoring of all patients treated with such therapy prior to approval of the therapy.
Post-Approval Requirements
Oftentimes, even after
a drug has been approved by the FDA for sale, the FDA may require that certain post-approval requirements be satisfied, including
the conduct of additional clinical studies. If such post-approval requirements are not satisfied, the FDA may withdraw its approval
of the drug. In addition, holders of an approved NDA or BLA are required to report certain adverse reactions to the FDA, comply
with certain requirements concerning advertising and promotional labeling for their products, and continue to have quality control
and manufacturing procedures conform to cGMPs after approval. The FDA periodically inspects the sponsor’s records related
to safety reporting and/or manufacturing facilities; this latter effort includes assessment of compliance with cGMPs. Accordingly,
manufacturers must continue to expend time, money, and effort in the area of production and quality control to maintain cGMPs compliance.
Other Healthcare
Fraud and Abuse Laws
In the U.S., our activities
are potentially subject to regulation by various federal, state and local authorities in addition to the FDA, including but not
limited to, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, other divisions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services (such as the Office of Inspector General and the Health Resources and Service Administration), the U.S. Department of
Justice, or the DOJ, and individual U.S. Attorney offices within the DOJ, and state and local governments. For example, sales,
marketing and scientific/educational grant programs may have to comply with the anti-fraud and abuse provisions of the Social Security
Act, the false claims laws, the privacy and security provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or
HIPAA, and similar state laws, each as amended, as applicable.
The federal Anti-Kickback
Statute prohibits, among other things, any person or entity from knowingly and willfully offering, paying, soliciting or receiving
any remuneration, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, to induce or in return for purchasing, leasing,
ordering or arranging for the purchase, lease or order of any item or service reimbursable, in whole or in part, under Medicare,
Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs. The term remuneration has been interpreted broadly to include anything of value.
The Anti-Kickback Statute has been interpreted to apply to arrangements between therapeutic product manufacturers on one hand and
prescribers, purchasers, and formulary managers on the other. There are a number of statutory exceptions and regulatory safe harbors
protecting some common activities from prosecution. The exceptions and safe harbors are drawn narrowly and practices that involve
remuneration that may be alleged to be intended to induce prescribing, purchasing or recommending may be subject to scrutiny if
they do not qualify for an exception or safe harbor. Failure to meet all of the requirements of a particular applicable statutory
exception or regulatory safe harbor does not make the conduct per se illegal under the Anti-Kickback Statute. Instead, the legality
of the arrangement will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis based on a cumulative review of all of its facts and circumstances.
Additionally, the intent standard under the Anti-Kickback Statute was amended by the ACA to a stricter standard such that a person
or entity no longer needs to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a
violation. In addition, the ACA codified case law that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of the federal
Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the federal False Claims Act, or FCA.
The federal false claims
and civil monetary penalty laws, including the FCA, which imposes significant penalties and can be enforced by private citizens
through civil qui tam actions, prohibit any person or entity from, among other things, knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented,
a false or fraudulent claim for payment to, or approval by, the federal healthcare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, or
knowingly making, using, or causing to be made or used a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim to the
federal government. A claim includes “any request or demand” for money or property presented to the U.S. government.
For instance, historically, pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies have been prosecuted under these laws for allegedly providing
free product to customers with the expectation that the customers would bill federal programs for the product. Other companies
have been prosecuted for causing false claims to be submitted because of the companies’ marketing of the product for unapproved,
off-label, and thus generally non-reimbursable, uses.
9
HIPAA created additional
federal criminal statutes that prohibit, among other things, knowingly and willfully executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme
to defraud or to obtain, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, any money or property owned by,
or under the control or custody of, any healthcare benefit program, including private third-party payors, willfully obstructing
a criminal investigation of a healthcare offense, and knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up by trick, scheme
or device, a material fact or making any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement in connection with the delivery of
or payment for healthcare benefits, items or services. Like the Anti-Kickback Statute, the ACA amended the intent standard for
certain healthcare fraud statutes under HIPAA such that a person or entity no longer needs to have actual knowledge of the statute
or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation.
Many states have similar,
and typically more prohibitive, fraud and abuse statutes or regulations that apply to items and services reimbursed under Medicaid
and other state programs, or, in several states, apply regardless of the payor. Additionally, to the extent that our product candidates
may in the future be sold in a foreign country, we may be subject to similar foreign laws.
We may be subject to data
privacy and security regulations by both the federal government and the states in which we conduct our business. HIPAA, as amended
by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or HITECH, and its implementing regulations, imposes
requirements relating to the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable health information. Among other things,
HITECH makes HIPAA’s privacy and security standards directly applicable to business associates, independent contractors,
or agents of covered entities that receive or obtain protected health information in connection with providing a service on behalf
of a covered entity. HITECH also created four new tiers of civil monetary penalties, amended HIPAA to make civil and criminal penalties
directly applicable to business associates, and gave state attorneys general new authority to file civil actions for damages or
injunctions in federal courts to enforce HIPAA and seek attorneys’ fees and costs associated with pursuing federal civil
actions. In addition, many state laws govern the privacy and security of health information in specified circumstances, many of
which differ from each other in significant ways, are often not pre-empted by HIPAA, and may have a more prohibitive effect than
HIPAA, thus complicating compliance efforts.
We expect our product,
after approval, may be eligible for coverage under Medicare, the federal health care program that provides health care benefits
to the aged and disabled, and covers outpatient services and supplies, including certain pharmaceutical products, that are medically
necessary to treat a beneficiary’s health condition. In addition, the product may be covered and reimbursed under other government
programs, such as Medicaid and the 340B Drug Pricing Program. The Medicaid Drug Rebate Program requires pharmaceutical manufacturers
to enter into and have in effect a national rebate agreement with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services
as a condition for states to receive federal matching funds for the manufacturer’s outpatient drugs furnished to Medicaid
patients. Under the 340B Drug Pricing Program, the manufacturer must extend discounts to entities that participate in the program.
As part of the requirements to participate in certain government programs, many pharmaceutical manufacturers must calculate and
report certain price reporting metrics to the government, such as average manufacturer price, or AMP, and best price. Penalties
may apply in some cases when such metrics are not submitted accurately and timely.
Additionally, the federal
Physician Payments Sunshine Act, or the Sunshine Act, within the ACA, and its implementing regulations, require that certain manufacturers
of drugs, devices, biological and medical supplies for which payment is available under Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s
Health Insurance Program (with certain exceptions) report annually to CMS information related to certain payments or other transfers
of value made or distributed to physicians and teaching hospitals, or to entities or individuals at the request of, or designated
on behalf of, the physicians and teaching hospitals and to report annually certain ownership and investment interests held by physicians
and their immediate family members. Failure to report accurately could result in penalties. In addition, many states also govern
the reporting of payments or other transfers of value, many of which differ from each other in significant ways, are often not
pre-empted, and may have a more prohibitive effect than the Sunshine Act, thus further complicating compliance efforts.
New Legislation and Regulations
From time to time, legislation
is drafted, introduced and passed in Congress that could significantly change the statutory provisions governing the testing, approval,
manufacturing and marketing of products regulated by the FDA. In addition to new legislation, FDA regulations and policies are
often revised or interpreted by the agency in ways that may significantly affect our business and our products. It is impossible
to predict whether further legislative changes will be enacted or whether FDA regulations, guidance, policies or interpretations
will be changed or what the effect of such changes, if any, may be.
10
ITEM
1A. RISK FACTORS
You
should carefully consider the following material risk factors as well as all other information set forth or referred to in this
report before purchasing shares of our common stock. Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. We may not
be successful in preventing the material adverse effects that any of the following risks and uncertainties may cause. These potential
risks and uncertainties may not be a complete list of the risks and uncertainties facing us. There may be additional risks and
uncertainties that we are presently unaware of, or presently consider immaterial, that may become material in the future and have
a material adverse effect on us. You could lose all or a significant portion of your investment due to any of these risks and
uncertainties.
Summary of
Risk Factors
Our
business is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that you should consider before investing in our company, as fully described
below. The principal factors and uncertainties that make investing in our company risky include, among others:
General
Operating and Business Risks
● Our
business is subject to risks arising from epidemic diseases, such as the recent outbreak
of the COVID-19 illness.
● Our
limited operating history makes it difficult for us to evaluate our future business prospects
and make decisions based on those estimates of our future performance.
● Our
results of operations have not resulted in profitability and we may not be able to achieve
profitability going forward.
● We
depend upon key personnel and need additional personnel.
● Currently,
we have several consulting contracts with related parties in China. The loss of such
customers could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.
● Our
auditors have issued a “Going Concern” audit opinion.
● We
must effectively manage the growth of our operations, or our company will suffer.
● Our
business requires substantial capital, and if we are unable to maintain adequate financing
sources our profitability and financial condition will suffer and jeopardize our ability
to continue operations.
● Our
revenue and results of operations may suffer if we are unable to attract new clients,
continue to engage existing clients, or sell additional products and services.
● Our
prospects will suffer if we are not able to hire, train, motivate, manage, and retain
a significant number of highly skilled employees.
● Potential
liability claims may adversely affect our business.
● In
accordance with our strategic development policy, we may invest in companies for strategic
reasons and may not realize a return on our investments.
● Our
growing operations in the PRC could expose us to risks that could have an adverse effect
on our costs of operations.
● We
face intense competition which could cause us to lose market share.
● If
we are unable to obtain and maintain sufficient intellectual property protection for
our products and product candidates, or if the scope of the intellectual property protection
obtained is not sufficiently broad, our competitors could develop and commercialize product
candidates similar or identical to ours, and our ability to successfully commercialize
our product candidates may be impaired.
● We
may face uncertainty and difficulty in obtaining and enforcing our patents and other
proprietary rights.
● We
may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights throughout the world.
● Patent
terms may be inadequate to protect our competitive position on our product candidates
for an adequate amount of time.
11
● Obtaining
and maintaining patent protection depends on compliance with various procedural, document
submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental patent agencies,
and any patent protection we may obtain in the future could be reduced or eliminated
for non-compliance with these requirements.
● It
is difficult and costly to protect our proprietary rights, and we may not be able to
ensure their protection. If we fail to protect or enforce our intellectual property rights
adequately or secure rights to patents of others, the value of our intellectual property
rights would diminish.
● If
we fail to comply with our obligations in the agreements under which we license intellectual
property rights from third parties or otherwise experience disruptions to our business
relationships with our licensors, we could lose intellectual property rights that are
important to our business.
● We
may be subject to claims challenging the inventorship of patents and other intellectual
property.
● If
any of our trade secrets, know-how or other proprietary information is disclosed, the
value of our trade secrets, know-how and other proprietary rights would be significantly
impaired and our business and competitive position would suffer.
● We
may incur substantial costs as a result of litigation or other proceedings relating to
patent and other intellectual property rights and we may be unable to protect our rights
to, or use of, our technology.
● Breaches
or compromises of our information security systems or our information technology systems
or infrastructure could result in exposure of private information, disruption of our
business and damage to our reputation, which could harm our business, results of operation
and financial condition.
● We
may be exposed to liabilities under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and any determination
that we violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or Chinese anti-corruption law could
have a material adverse effect on our business.
Risk
Factors Related to Clinical and Commercialization Activity
● We
may not be able to file INDs to commence additional clinical trials on the timelines
we expect, and even if we are able to do so, the FDA may not permit us to proceed.
● We
have limited experience in conducting clinical trials.
● Delays
in the commencement, enrollment, and completion of clinical testing could result in increased
costs to us and delay or limit our ability to obtain regulatory approval for our product
candidates.
● Our
success depends upon the viability of our product candidates and we cannot be certain
any of them will receive regulatory approval to be commercialized.
● As
the results of earlier pre-clinical studies or clinical trials are not necessarily predictive
of future results, any product candidate we advance into clinical trials may not have
favorable results in later clinical trials or receive regulatory approval.
● Our
business faces significant government regulation, and there is no guarantee that our
product candidates will receive regulatory approval.
● Even
if our product candidates receive regulatory approval, we may still face future development
and regulatory difficulties.
● If
we or current or future collaborators, manufacturers, or service providers fail to comply
with healthcare laws and regulations, we or they could be subject to enforcement actions
and substantial penalties, which could affect our ability to develop, market and sell
our products and may harm our reputation.
● Any
cell based therapies we develop may become subject to unfavorable pricing regulations,
third party coverage and reimbursement practices or healthcare reform initiatives, thereby
harming our business.
● The
healthcare industry is heavily regulated in the U.S. at the federal, state, and local
levels, and our failure to comply with applicable requirements may subject us to penalties
and negatively affect our financial condition.
● Our
ability to obtain reimbursement or funding from the federal government may be impacted
by possible reductions in federal spending.
12
Risks
Related to Doing Business in China
● If
we become directly subject to the recent scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity involving
certain U.S.-listed Chinese companies, we may have to expend significant resources to
investigate and resolve the matter which could harm our business operations, stock price
and reputation and could result in a loss of your investment in our stock, especially
if such matter cannot be addressed and resolved quickly.
● Adverse
changes in political and economic policies of the PRC government could impede the overall
economic growth of China, which could reduce the demand for our products and damage our
business.
● Uncertainties
with respect to the PRC legal system could limit the legal protections available to you
and us.
● The
PRC government exerts substantial influence over the manner in which we must conduct
our business activities.
● We
may be unable to complete a business combination transaction efficiently or on favorable
terms due to complicated merger and acquisition regulations implemented on September
8, 2006.
● Under
the current Enterprise Income Tax, or EIT, law, we may be classified as a “resident
enterprise” of China. Such classification will likely result in unfavorable tax
consequences to us and our non- PRC stockholders.
● We
may be subject to fines and legal sanctions if we or our Chinese employees fail to comply
with PRC regulations relating to employee stock options granted by overseas listed companies
to PRC citizens.
● The
new M&A Rules establish more complex procedures for some acquisitions of Chinese
companies by foreign investor which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth
through acquisitions in China.
● Government
control of currency conversion and future movements in exchange rates may adversely affect
our operations and financial results.
Risks
Related to Our Securities
● The
price of our common stock may be volatile and fluctuate substantially, which could result
in substantial losses for our stockholders.
● Future
sales of our common stock or securities convertible or exchangeable for our common stock
may cause our stock price to decline.
● You
may experience dilution of your ownership interests because of the future issuance of
additional shares of our common or preferred stock or other securities that are convertible
into or exercisable for our common or preferred stock.
● The
ability of our Board of Directors to issue additional stock may prevent or make more
difficult certain transactions, including a sale or merger.
● We
are a “smaller reporting company,” and we cannot be certain if the reduced
disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies will make our common
stock less attractive to investors.
● If
securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business,
or if they issue an adverse or misleading opinion regarding our stock, our stock price
and trading volume could decline.
● Our
officers, directors and principal stockholders own a significant percentage of our stock
and will be able to exert significant control over matters subject to stockholder approval.
● We
may be exposed to additional risks as a result of “going public” by means
of a reverse acquisition transaction.
● We
do not anticipate paying dividends on our common stock, and investors may lose the entire
amount of their investment.
● Applicable
regulatory requirements, including those contained in and issued under the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act of 2002, may make it difficult for us to retain or attract qualified officers and
directors, which could adversely affect the management of our business and our ability
to obtain or retain listing of our common stock on a national securities exchange.
● If
we cannot satisfy, or continue to satisfy, the initial listing requirements and other
rules of the Nasdaq Capital Market, our securities may be delisted, which could negatively
impact the price of our securities and your ability to sell them.
● We
could be subject to securities class action litigation.
13
General
Operating and Business Risks
Our business is
subject to risks arising from epidemic diseases, such as the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 illness.
The recent outbreak of
the Coronavirus Disease 2019, or COVID-19, which has been declared by the World Health Organization to be a “public
health emergency of international concern,” has spread across the globe and is impacting worldwide economic activity. Although
several vaccines have been developed, a public health epidemic, including COVID-19, poses the risk that we or our employees, contractors,
suppliers, and other partners may be prevented from conducting business activities for an indefinite period of time, including
due to shutdowns that may be requested or mandated by governmental authorities. While it is not possible at this time to estimate
the impact that COVID-19 could have on our business, the continued spread of COVID-19 and the measures taken by the governments
of countries affected could disrupt the supply chain and adversely impact our business, financial condition or results of operations.
The COVID-19 outbreak and mitigation measures may also have an adverse impact on global economic conditions which could have an
adverse effect on our business and financial condition. The extent to which the COVID-19 outbreak impacts our results will depend
on future developments that are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information that may emerge concerning
the severity of the virus and the actions to contain its impact.
Our limited operating history makes it difficult
for us to evaluate our future business prospects and make decisions based on those estimates of our future performance .
We did not begin operations
of our business through AHS until May 2015. We have a limited operating history and limited revenue. As a consequence, it is difficult,
if not impossible, to forecast our future results based upon our historical data. Reliance on the historical results may not be
representative of the results we will achieve, particularly in our combined form. Because of the uncertainties related to our lack
of historical operations, we may be hindered in our ability to anticipate and timely adapt to increases or decreases in revenues
or expenses. If we make poor budgetary decisions as a result of unreliable historical data, we could be less profitable or incur
losses, which may result in a decline in our stock price.
Our results of operations have not resulted
in profitability and we may not be able to achieve profitability going forward.
We incurred a net
loss amounting to $12,679,438 for the year ended December 31, 2020 and a net loss amounting to $18,070,161 for the year ended
December 31, 2019. If we incur additional significant losses, our stock price may decline, perhaps significantly. Our
management is developing plans to achieve profitability. Our business plan is speculative and unproven. There is no assurance
that we will be successful in executing our business plan or that even if we successfully implement our business plan, that
we will be able to curtail our losses now or in the future. Further, as we are a new enterprise, we expect that net losses
will continue.
We depend upon key personnel and need additional
personnel.
Our success depends on
the continuing services of Wenzhao Lu, our Chairman of the Board, and David Jin, Meng Li and Luisa Ingargiola, our executive officers.
The loss of Mr. Lu, Dr. Jin, Ms. Li or Ms. Ingargiola could have a material and adverse effect on our business operations. Additionally,
the success of our operations will largely depend upon our ability to successfully attract and maintain competent and qualified
key management personnel. As with any company with limited resources, there can be no guaranty that we will be able to attract
such individuals or that the presence of such individuals will necessarily translate into profitability for us. Our inability to
attract and retain key personnel may materially and adversely affect our business operations.
Currently, we have several consulting contracts
with related parties in China. The loss of such customers could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.
During the year ended
December 31, 2020, we recognized an aggregate of $1,377,762 in revenue, of which $170,908 was generated from related parties.
During the year ended December 31, 2019, we recognized an aggregate of $1,546,305 in revenue, of which $355,544 was generated
from related parties. Wenzhao Lu, our Chairman and significant shareholder, is the Chairman of each of the related parties. The
loss of any related party customer would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operation, the
loss of more than one such related party customer, or our failure to replace such customer with other customers, could have a
material adverse effect on our financial condition and our results of operations.
14
Our auditors have issued an audit opinion
which raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
Our independent auditors
have indicated, in their report on our December 31, 2020 consolidated financial statements, that there is substantial doubt about
our ability to continue as a going concern. We had an accumulated deficit of $42,041,375 at December 31, 2020. We have a limited
operating history, incurred recurring net loss and negative cash flows from operating activities, and our continued growth is dependent
upon the continuation of providing medical consulting services to our related parties, generating rental revenue from our income-producing
real estate property in New Jersey and generating revenue from development services and sales of developed products; hence generating
revenues, and obtaining additional financing to fund future obligations and pay liabilities arising from normal business operations.
Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent on our ability to raise additional capital, implement our business plan,
and generate significant revenues. There are no assurances that we will be successful in our efforts to generate significant revenues,
maintain sufficient cash balance or report profitable operations or to continue as a going concern. We plan on raising capital
through the sale of equity to implement our business plan. However, there is no assurance these plans will be realized and that
any additional financings will be available to our company on satisfactory terms and conditions, if any.
We must effectively manage the growth of
our operations, or our company will suffer.
To manage our growth, we
believe we must continue to implement and improve our services and products. We may not have adequately evaluated the costs and
risks associated with our planned expansion, and our systems, procedures, and controls may not be adequate to support our operations.
In addition, our management may not be able to achieve the rapid execution necessary to successfully offer our products and services
and implement our business plan on a profitable basis. The success of our future operating activities will also depend upon our
ability to expand our support system to meet the demands of our growing business. Any failure by our management to effectively
anticipate, implement, and manage changes required to sustain our growth would have a material adverse effect on our business,
financial condition, and results of operations.
Our business requires substantial capital,
and if we are unable to maintain adequate financing sources our profitability and financial condition will suffer and jeopardize
our ability to continue operations.
In connection with the
strategic development portion of our business, we will need significant capital in order to implement acquisitions of technologies.
In addition, we will need a significant amount of capital in order to fully implement our advisory business, maintain our rental
property and further develop our exosome business. If we are unable to maintain adequate financing or other sources of capital
are not available, we could be forced to suspend, curtail or reduce our operations, which could harm our revenues, profitability,
financial condition and business prospects.
Our revenue and results of operations may
suffer if we are unable to attract new clients, continue to engage existing clients, or sell additional products and services.
We presently derive our
revenue from providing medical related consulting services to related parties and generating rental revenue from our income-producing
real estate property in New Jersey. Our growth therefore depends on our ability to attract new clients, maintain existing clients
and properties and sell additional products and services to existing clients. This depends on our ability to understand and anticipate
market and pricing trends and our clients’ needs and our ability to deliver consistent, reliable, high-quality services.
Our failure to engage new clients, continue to re-engage with our existing clients or cross-sell additional services could materially
and adversely affect our operating results.
Our prospects will suffer if we are not
able to hire, train, motivate, manage, and retain a significant number of highly skilled employees.
We only recently commenced
business and we presently generate medical related consulting services from related parties and generate rental revenue from our
income-producing real estate property in New Jersey. On the consulting side, Wenzhao Lu, our Chairman and significant shareholder,
is the Chairman of each of the clients in which we have provided consulting services. Our future success depends upon our ability
to hire, train, motivate, manage, and retain a significant number of highly skilled employees, particularly research analysts,
technical experts, and sales and marketing staff. We will experience competition for professional personnel in each of our business
lines. Hiring, training, motivating, managing, and retaining employees with the skills we need is time consuming and expensive.
Any failure by us to address our staffing needs in an effective manner could hinder our ability to continue to provide high-quality
products and services and to grow our business.
Potential liability claims may adversely
affect our business.
Our services, which may
include recommendations and advice to organizations regarding complex business and operational processes and regulatory and compliance
issues may give rise to liability claims by our clients or by third parties who bring claims against our clients. Healthcare organizations
often are the subject of regulatory scrutiny and litigation, and we also may become the subject of such litigation based on our
advice and services. Any such litigation, whether or not resulting in a judgment against us, may adversely affect our reputation
and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. We may not have adequate insurance
coverage for claims against us.
In accordance with our strategic development
policy, we may invest in companies for strategic reasons and may not realize a return on our investments.
From time to time, we
may make investments in companies. These investments may be for strategic objectives to support our key business initiatives but
may also be standalone investments or acquisitions. Such investments or acquisitions could include equity or debt instruments
in private companies, many of which may not be marketable at the time of our initial investment. These companies may range from
early-stage companies that are often still defining their strategic direction to more mature companies with established revenue
streams and business models. The success of these companies may depend on product development, market acceptance, operational
efficiency, and other key business factors. The companies in which we invest may fail because they may not be able to secure additional
funding, obtain favorable investment terms for future financings, or take advantage of liquidity events such as public offerings,
mergers, and private sales. If any of these private companies fails, we could lose all or part of our investment in that company.
If we determine that impairment indicators exist and that there are other-than-temporary declines in the fair value of the investments,
we may be required to write down the investments to their fair value and recognize the related write-down as an investment loss.
15
Our growing operations in the PRC could
expose us to risks that could have an adverse effect on our costs of operations.
Our client base is presently
located in the PRC. We intend to grow this client base in the PRC as well as the United States. As a result, we expect to continue
to add personnel in the PRC. With a significant focus of our operations in the PRC, our reliance on a workforce in the PRC exposes
us to disruptions in the business, political, and economic environment in that region. Maintenance of a stable political environment
between the PRC and the United States is important to our operations, and any disruption in this relationship may directly negatively
affect our operations. Our operations in the PRC require us to comply with complex local laws and regulatory requirements and expose
us to foreign currency exchange rate risk. Our operations may also be subject to reduced or inadequate protection of our intellectual
property rights, and security breaches. Further, it may be difficult to transfer funds from our Chinese operations to our company.
Negative developments in any of these areas could increase our costs of operations or otherwise harm our business.
We face intense competition which could cause us to lose market
share.
In the healthcare markets
in the United States and the People’s Republic of China, we will compete with large healthcare providers who have more significant
financial resources, established market positions, long-standing relationships, and who have more significant name recognition,
technical, marketing, sales, distribution, financial and other resources than we do. The resources available to our competitors
to develop new services and products and introduce them into the marketplace exceed the resources currently available to us. This
intense competitive environment may require us to make changes in our services, products, pricing, licensing, distribution, or
marketing to develop a market position.
If we are unable to obtain and maintain
sufficient intellectual property protection for our products and product candidates, or if the scope of the intellectual property
protection obtained is not sufficiently broad, our competitors could develop and commercialize product candidates similar or identical
to ours, and our ability to successfully commercialize our product candidates may be impaired.
Our success will depend
in large part on our ability to obtain, maintain, and defend patents on our product candidates, obtain licenses to use third-party
technologies, protect our trade secrets, and operate without infringing the proprietary rights of others. As is the case with other
biopharmaceutical companies, our success depends on our ability to protect and defend intellectual property we own or license,
particularly patents, in the United States and other countries with respect to our product candidates and technology. We seek to
protect our proprietary position by filing patent applications in the United States and abroad related to our product candidates.
Obtaining and enforcing
biopharmaceutical patents is costly, time consuming and complex, and we may not be able to file and prosecute all necessary or
desirable patent applications, or maintain, enforce and license any patents that may issue from such patent applications, at a
reasonable cost or in a timely manner. It is also possible that we will fail to identify patentable aspects of our research and
development output before it is too late to obtain patent protection. We may not have the right to control the preparation, filing
and prosecution of patent applications, or to maintain the rights to patents licensed to third parties. Therefore, these patents
and applications may not be prosecuted and enforced in a manner consistent with the best interests of our business.
The patent position of
biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies generally is highly uncertain, involves complex legal, technological and factual questions
and has in recent years been the subject of much litigation. In addition, the laws of foreign countries may not protect our rights
to the same extent as the laws of the United States, or vice versa. Further, we may not be aware of all third-party intellectual
property rights potentially relating to our product candidates. Publications of discoveries in the scientific literature often
lag behind the actual discoveries, and patent applications in the United States and other jurisdictions are typically not published
until 18 months after filing or, in some cases, not at all. Therefore, we cannot know with certainty whether we were the first
to make the inventions claimed in our patents or pending patent applications, or that we were the first to file for patent protection
of such inventions. As a result, the issuance, scope, validity, enforceability and commercial value of our patent rights are highly
uncertain.
Moreover, we may be subject
to a third-party preissuance submission of prior art to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or the USPTO, or become
involved in opposition, derivation, reexamination, inter partes review, post-grant review or interference proceedings challenging
our patent rights or the patent rights of others. An adverse determination in any such submission, proceeding or litigation could
reduce the scope of, or invalidate, our patent rights, allow third parties to commercialize our product candidates and compete
directly with us, without payment to us, or result in our inability to manufacture or commercialize drugs without infringing third-party
patent rights. In addition, if the breadth or strength of protection provided by our patents and patent applications is threatened,
regardless of the outcome, it could dissuade companies from collaborating with us to license, develop or commercialize current
or future product candidates.
In addition, the issuance
of a patent is not conclusive as to its inventorship, scope, validity or enforceability, and our patents may be challenged in the
courts or patent offices in the United States and abroad. Such challenges may result in loss of exclusivity or freedom to operate
or in patent claims being narrowed, invalidated or held unenforceable, in whole or in part, which could limit our ability to stop
others from using or commercializing similar or identical product candidates, or limit the duration of the patent protection of
our product candidates. Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates,
patents protecting such candidates might expire before or shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, our patent
portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing drugs similar or identical to ours.
16
We may face uncertainty and difficulty in
obtaining and enforcing our patents and other proprietary rights.
There can be no assurance
that any patent applications we file or license will be approved, or that challenges will not be instituted against the validity
or enforceability of any patent licensed-in or owned by us. Our pending and future patent applications may not result in patents
being issued that protect our product candidates, in whole or in part, or which effectively prevent others from commercializing
competitive product candidates. Even if our patent applications issue as patents, they may not issue in a form that will provide
us with any meaningful protection, prevent competitors from competing with us or otherwise provide us with any competitive advantage.
Our competitors may be able to circumvent our patents by developing similar or alternative product candidates in a non-infringing
manner. The cost of litigation to uphold the validity and prevent infringement of a patent is substantial. Furthermore, there can
be no assurance that others will not independently develop substantially equivalent technologies not covered by patents to which
we have rights or obtain access to our know-how. In addition, the laws of certain countries may not adequately protect our intellectual
property. Our competitors may possess or obtain patents on products or processes that are necessary or useful to the development,
use, or manufacture of our product candidates. There can also be no assurance that our proposed technology will not infringe upon
patents or proprietary rights owned by others, with the result that others may bring infringement claims against us and require
us to license such proprietary rights, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, if at all. Any such litigation,
if instituted, could have a material adverse effect, potentially including monetary penalties, diversion of management resources,
and injunction against continued manufacture, use, or sale of certain products or processes.
We rely upon non-patented
proprietary know-how. There can be no assurance that we can adequately protect our rights in such non-patented proprietary know-how,
or that others will not independently develop substantially equivalent proprietary information or techniques or gain access to
our proprietary know-how. Any of the foregoing events could have a material adverse effect on us. In addition, if any of our trade
secrets, know-how or other proprietary information were to be disclosed, or misappropriated, the value of our trade secrets, know-how
and other proprietary rights would be significantly impaired and our business and competitive position would suffer.
In September 2011, the
Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, or the Leahy-Smith Act, was signed into law. The Leahy-Smith Act includes a number of significant
changes to U.S. patent law. These include provisions that affect the way patent applications will be prosecuted and may also affect
patent litigation. In particular, under the Leahy-Smith Act, the United States transitioned in March 2013 to a “first to
file” system in which the first inventor to file a patent application will be entitled to the patent. Third parties are allowed
to submit prior art before the issuance of a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, and may become involved
in opposition, derivation, post-grant and inter partes review, or interference proceedings challenging our patent rights.
An adverse determination in any such submission, proceeding or litigation could reduce the scope of, or invalidate, our patent
rights, which could adversely affect our competitive position.
The USPTO has developed
new and untested regulations and procedures to govern the full implementation of the Leahy-Smith Act, and many of the substantive
changes to patent law associated with the Leahy-Smith Act, and in particular, the “first-to-file” provisions, only
became effective in March 2013. The Leahy-Smith Act has also introduced procedures that may make it easier for third parties to
challenge issued patents, as well as to intervene in the prosecution of patent applications. Finally, the Leahy-Smith Act contains
new statutory provisions that still require the USPTO to issue new regulations for their implementation, and it may take the courts
years to interpret the provisions of the new statute. Accordingly, it is not clear what, if any, impact the Leahy-Smith Act will
have on the operation of our business. The Leahy-Smith Act and its implementation could increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding
the prosecution of our patent applications and the enforcement or defense of our issued patents.
We may not be able to protect our intellectual
property rights throughout the world.
Filing, prosecuting and
defending patents on our product candidates in all countries throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive, and our intellectual
property rights in some countries outside the United States may be less extensive than those in the United States. In addition,
the laws of some foreign countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as federal and state laws in
the United States. Consequently, we may not be able to prevent third parties from practicing our inventions in all countries outside
the United States, or from selling or importing products made using our inventions in and into the United States or other jurisdictions.
Competitors may use our technologies in jurisdictions where we do not obtain patent protection to develop their own products and
may also export infringing products to territories where we have patent protection, but enforcement is not as strong as that in
the United States. These products may compete with our products and our patents or other intellectual property rights may not be
effective or sufficient to prevent them from competing.
Many companies have
encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions. The legal systems
of certain countries, particularly certain developing countries, do not favor the enforcement of patents, trade secrets, and other
intellectual property protection, particularly those relating to biotechnology products, which could make it difficult for us to
stop the infringement of our patents or marketing of competing products in violation of our proprietary rights generally. Proceedings
to enforce our patent rights in foreign jurisdictions, whether or not successful, could result in substantial costs and divert
our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, could put our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted
narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing and could provoke third parties to assert claims against us. We may
not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate and the damages or other remedies awarded, if any, may not be commercially meaningful.
Accordingly, our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights around the world may be inadequate to obtain a significant
commercial advantage from the intellectual property that we develop or license.
17
Patent terms may be inadequate to protect
our competitive position on our product candidates for an adequate amount of time.
Patents have a limited
lifespan. In the United States, if all maintenance fees are timely paid, the natural expiration of a patent is generally 20 years
from its earliest U.S. non-provisional filing date. Various extensions may be available, but the life of a patent, and the protection
it affords, is limited. Even if patents covering our product candidates are obtained, once the patent life has expired, we may
be open to competition from competitive products, including generics or biosimilars. Given the amount of time required for the
development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting such candidates might expire before or
shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, any patents we may obtain may not provide us with sufficient rights
to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.
Obtaining and maintaining patent protection
depends on compliance with various procedural, document submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental
patent agencies, and any patent protection we may obtain in the future could be reduced or eliminated for non-compliance with these
requirements.
Periodic maintenance fees,
renewal fees, annuity fees and various other governmental fees on patents and/or applications will be due to be paid to the USPTO
and various governmental patent agencies outside of the United States in several stages over the lifetime of the patents and/or
applications. The USPTO and various non-U.S. governmental patent agencies require compliance with a number of procedural, documentary,
fee payment and other similar provisions during the patent application process. There are situations in which non-compliance can
result in abandonment or lapse of the patent or patent application, resulting in partial or complete loss of patent rights in the
relevant jurisdiction. In such an event, our competitors might be able to enter the market and this circumstance would have a material
adverse effect on our business.
It is difficult and costly to protect our
proprietary rights, and we may not be able to ensure their protection. If we fail to protect or enforce our intellectual property
rights adequately or secure rights to patents of others, the value of our intellectual property rights would diminish.
Our commercial viability
will depend in part on obtaining and maintaining patent protection and trade secret protection of our product candidates, and the
methods used to manufacture them, as well as successfully defending these patents against third-party challenges. Our ability to
stop third parties from making, using, selling, offering to sell, or importing our products is dependent upon the extent to which
we obtain rights under valid and enforceable patents or trade secrets that cover these activities.
The patent positions of
pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies can be highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions for which
important legal principles remain unresolved. No consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed in biopharmaceutical
patents has emerged to date in the United States. The biopharmaceutical patent situation outside the United States is even more
uncertain. Changes in either the patent laws or in interpretations of patent laws in the United States and other countries may
diminish the value of our intellectual property. Accordingly, we cannot predict the breadth of claims that may be allowed or enforced
in the patents we own. Further, if any of our patents are deemed invalid and unenforceable, it could impact our ability to commercialize
or license our technology.
The degree of future protection
for our proprietary rights is uncertain because legal means afford only limited protection and may not adequately protect our rights
or permit us to gain or keep our competitive advantage. For example:
●
others may be able to make products that are similar to our product candidates but that are not covered by the claims of any patents;
●
we might not have been the first to make the inventions covered by any issued patents or patent applications;
●
we might not have been the first to file patent applications for these inventions;
●
it is possible that any patent applications we own or license will not result in issued patents;
●
any issued patents may not provide us with any competitive advantages, or may be held invalid or unenforceable as a result of legal challenges by third parties;
●
we may not develop additional proprietary technologies that are patentable or protectable under trade secrets law; or
●
the patents of others may have an adverse effect on our business.
We also may rely on trade
secrets to protect our technology, especially where we do not believe patent protection is appropriate or obtainable. However,
trade secrets are difficult to protect. Although we use reasonable efforts to protect our trade secrets, our employees, consultants,
contractors, outside scientific collaborators, and other advisors may unintentionally or willfully disclose our information to
competitors. In addition, courts outside the United States are sometimes less willing to protect trade secrets. Moreover, our competitors
may independently develop equivalent knowledge, methods, and know-how.
18
If we fail to comply with our obligations in the agreements
under which we license intellectual property rights from third parties or otherwise experience disruptions to our business relationships
with our licensors, we could lose intellectual property rights that are important to our business.
We are party to a research
agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (“MIT”) for development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)
technology. MIT has granted us options to non-exclusively or exclusively license MIT inventions arising under this research agreement.
We may need to negotiate commercially reasonable terms and conditions with MIT to advance our research and development activities
or allow the commercialization of CAR technology or any other product candidates we may identify and pursue.
We have a strategic
partnership agreement with Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University (“Weill Cornell”) for co-development
of CAR-T, CAR-NK, endothelial cells, stem cells and exosomes. We have no rights in any Weill Cornell intellectual property resulting
from this strategic partnership agreement. We may need to negotiate terms and conditions with Weill Cornell to advance our research
and development activities or allow the commercialization of technology if this strategic partnership results in Weill Cornell
intellectual property.
We have an agreement with
China Inmunotech for clinical trial work on CD19 under which intellectual property will be co-owned by us and China Immunotech.
Our subsidiary Avactis
Biosciences, Inc. and Arbele Limited (“Arbele”) are parties to the joint venture AVAR BioTherapeutics Ltd. (“AVAR”)
for development of other chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) technology. Arbele has granted AVAR an exclusive license to its rights
in this technology. We and AVAR may need to obtain additional licenses from others to advance our research and development activities
or allow the commercialization of CAR technology or any other product candidates we may identify and pursue.
Our agreements with
MIT, China Immuotech and AVAR’s license agreement with Arbele impose, and we expect that future agreements will impose, various
development, diligence, commercialization, or other obligations on AVAR and us. In spite of our efforts, MIT, Dr. Hsu, China Immuotech
or Arbele might conclude that we or AVAR have materially breached its obligations under such agreements and might therefore terminate
the agreements, thereby removing or limiting our ability or our subsidiary AVAR’s ability to develop and commercialize products
and technology covered by these license agreements. If these in-licenses are terminated, or if the underlying patents fail to provide
the intended exclusivity, competitors or other third parties would have the freedom to seek regulatory approval of, and to market,
products identical to ours and we may be required to cease our development and commercialization of CAR technology or other product
candidates that we may identify. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our competitive position, business,
financial conditions, results of operations, and prospects.
Moreover, disputes may
arise regarding intellectual property subject to a licensing agreement, including:
●
the scope of rights granted under the license agreement and other interpretation-related issues;
●
the extent to which our product candidates, technology and processes infringe on intellectual property of the licensor that is not subject to the licensing agreement;
●
the sublicensing of patent and other rights under our collaborative development relationships;
●
our diligence obligations under the license agreement and what activities satisfy those diligence obligations;
●
the inventorship and ownership of inventions and know-how resulting from the joint creation or use of intellectual property by our licensors and us and our partners; and
●
the priority of invention of patented technology.
In addition, the agreements
under which we currently license intellectual property or technology from third parties are complex, and certain provisions in
such agreements may be susceptible to multiple interpretations. The resolution of any contract interpretation disagreement that
may arise could narrow what we believe to be the scope of our rights to the relevant intellectual property or technology, or increase
what we believe to be our financial or other obligations under the relevant agreement, either of which could have a material adverse
effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects. Moreover, if disputes over intellectual property
that we have licensed prevent or impair our ability to maintain our current licensing arrangements on commercially acceptable terms,
we may be unable to successfully develop and commercialize the affected product candidates, which could have a material adverse
effect on our business, financial conditions, results of operations, and prospects.
We may be subject to claims challenging
the inventorship of patents and other intellectual property.
We or our licensors may
be subject to claims that former employees, collaborators or other third parties have an interest as an inventor or co-inventor
in intellectual property we own or license. For example, we or our licensors may have inventorship disputes arise from conflicting
obligations of employees, consultants or others who are involved in developing our product candidates. We may be subject to claims
by third parties asserting that our licensors, employees or we have misappropriated their intellectual property, or claiming ownership
of what we regard as our own intellectual property. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these and other claims challenging
inventorship or our or our licensors’ ownership of our owned or in-licensed patents, trade secrets or other intellectual
property. If we or our licensors fail in defending any such claims, in addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable
intellectual property rights, such as exclusive ownership of, or right to use, intellectual property that is important to our
product candidates. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and
be a distraction to management and other employees. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business,
financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
19
If any of our trade secrets, know-how or
other proprietary information is disclosed, the value of our trade secrets, know-how and other proprietary rights would be significantly
impaired and our business and competitive position would suffer.
Our viability also depends
upon the skills, knowledge and experience of our scientific and technical personnel, and our consultants and advisors. To help
protect our proprietary know-how and our inventions for which patents may be unobtainable or difficult to obtain, we rely on trade
secret protection and confidentiality agreements. To this end, we require all of our employees, consultants, advisors and contractors
to enter into agreements which prohibit unauthorized disclosure and use of confidential information and, where applicable, require
disclosure and assignment to us of the ideas, developments, discoveries and inventions important to our business. These agreements
are often limited in duration and may not provide adequate protection for our trade secrets, know-how or other proprietary information
in the event of any unauthorized use or disclosure or the lawful development by others of such information. There is no assurance
that such agreements will be honored by such parties or enforced in whole or part by the courts. We cannot be certain that others
will not gain access to these trade secrets or that our patents will provide adequate protection. Others may independently develop
substantially equivalent proprietary information and techniques or otherwise gain access to our trade secrets. In addition, enforcing
a claim that a third party illegally obtained and is using any of our trade secrets is expensive and time consuming, and the outcome
is unpredictable. If any of our trade secrets, know-how or other proprietary information is improperly disclosed, the value of
our trade secrets, know-how and other proprietary rights would be significantly impaired and our business and competitive position
would suffer.
We may incur substantial costs as a result
of litigation or other proceedings relating to patent and other intellectual property rights and we may be unable to protect our
rights to, or use of, our technology.
If we choose to go to court
to stop a third party from using the inventions claimed in our patents, that individual or company has the right to ask the court
to rule that such patents are invalid and/or should not be enforced against that third party. These lawsuits are expensive and
would consume time and other resources, even if we were successful in discontinuing the infringement of our patents. In addition,
there is a risk that the court will decide that these patents are not valid and that we do not have the right to stop the other
party from using the inventions. There is also the risk that, even if the validity of these patents is upheld, the court will refuse
to stop the other party on the ground that such other party’s activities do not infringe our rights to these patents. In
addition, the U.S. Supreme Court has in the past invalidated tests used by the USPTO in granting patents over the past 20 years.
As a consequence, issued patents may be found to contain invalid claims according to the newly revised standards. Some of our own
patents may be subject to challenge and subsequent invalidation in a variety of post-grant proceedings, particularly inter partes
review, before the USPTO or during litigation under the revised criteria, which make it more difficult to defend the validity of
claims in already issued patents.
Furthermore, a third party
may claim that we or our manufacturing or commercialization partners are using inventions covered by the third party’s patent
rights and may go to court to stop us from engaging in our normal operations and activities, including making or selling our product
candidates. These lawsuits are costly and could affect our results of operations and divert the attention of managerial and technical
personnel. There is a risk that a court could decide that we or our commercialization partners are infringing the third party’s
patents and order us or our partners to stop the activities covered by the patents. In addition, there is a risk that a court could
order us or our partners to pay the other party damages for having violated the other party’s patents. The biotechnology
industry has produced a proliferation of patents, and it is not always clear to industry participants, including us, which patents
cover various types of products, manufacturing processes or methods of use. The coverage of patents is subject to interpretation
by the courts, and the interpretation is not always uniform. If we are sued for patent infringement, we would need to demonstrate
that our products, manufacturing processes or methods of use either do not infringe the patent claims of the relevant patent and/or
that the patent claims are invalid, and we may not be able to do this. Proving invalidity, in particular, is difficult since it
requires a showing of clear and convincing evidence to overcome the presumption of validity enjoyed by issued patents.
As some patent applications
in the United States may be maintained in secrecy until the patents are issued, because patent applications in the United States
and many foreign jurisdictions are typically not published until eighteen months after filing, and because publications in the
scientific literature often lag behind actual discoveries, we cannot be certain that others have not filed patent applications
for technology covered by our issued patents or our pending applications, or that we were the first to invent the technology. Our
competitors may have filed, and may in the future file, patent applications covering technology similar to ours. Any such patent
applications may have priority over our patent applications or patents, which could further require us to obtain rights to issued
patents covering such technologies. If another party has filed a United States patent application on inventions similar to ours,
we may have to participate in an interference proceeding declared by the USPTO to determine priority of invention in the United
States. The costs of these proceedings could be substantial, and it is possible that such efforts would be unsuccessful if, unbeknownst
to us, the other party had independently arrived at the same or similar invention prior to our own invention, resulting in a loss
of our U.S. patent position with respect to such inventions.
Some of our competitors
may be able to sustain the costs of complex patent litigation more effectively than we can because they have substantially greater
resources. In addition, any uncertainties resulting from the initiation and continuation of any litigation or inter partes
review proceedings could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise the funds necessary to continue our operations.
Some jurisdictions in which
we operate have enacted legislation which allows members of the public to access information under statutes similar to the U.S.
Freedom of Information Act. Even though we believe our information would be excluded from the scope of such statutes, there are
no assurances that we can protect our confidential information from being disclosed under the provisions of such laws. If any confidential
or proprietary information is released to the public, such disclosures may negatively impact our ability to protect our intellectual
property rights.
20
Breaches or compromises of our information
security systems or our information technology systems or infrastructure could result in exposure of private information, disruption
of our business and damage to our reputation, which could harm our business, results of operation and financial condition.
We utilize information
security and information technology systems and websites that allow for the secure storage and transmission of proprietary or private
information regarding our clients, patients, employees, vendors and others, including individually identifiable health information.
A security breach of our network, hosted service providers, or vendor systems, may expose us to a risk of loss or misuse of this
information, litigation and potential liability. Hackers and data thieves are increasingly sophisticated and operate large-scale
and complex automated attacks, including on companies within the healthcare industry. Although we believe that we take appropriate
measures to safeguard sensitive information within our possession, we may not have the resources or technical sophistication to
anticipate or prevent rapidly-evolving types of cyber-attacks targeted at us, our clients, our patients, or others who have entrusted
us with information. Actual or anticipated attacks may cause us to incur costs, including costs to deploy additional personnel
and protection technologies, train employees, and engage third-party experts and consultants. We invest in industry standard security
technology to protect personal information. Advances in computer capabilities, new technological discoveries, or other developments
may result in the technology used by us to protect personal information or other data being breached or compromised. To our knowledge,
we have not experienced any material breach of our cybersecurity systems. If our or our third-party service provider systems fail
to operate effectively or are damaged, destroyed, or shut down, or there are problems with transitioning to upgraded or replacement
systems, or there are security breaches in these systems, any of the aforementioned could occur as a result of natural disasters,
software or equipment failures, telecommunications failures, loss or theft of equipment, acts of terrorism, circumvention of security
systems, or other cyber-attacks, we could experience delays or decreases in revenue, and reduced efficiency of our operations.
Additionally, any of these events could lead to violations of privacy laws, loss of customers, or loss, misappropriation or corruption
of confidential information, trade secrets or data, which could expose us to potential litigation, regulatory actions, sanctions
or other statutory penalties, any or all of which could adversely affect our business, and cause us to incur significant losses
and remediation costs.
We may be exposed to liabilities under the
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and any determination that we violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or Chinese anti-corruption
law could have a material adverse effect on our business.
We are subject to the Foreign
Corrupt Practice Act, or FCPA, and other laws that prohibit improper payments or offers of payments to foreign governments and
their officials and political parties by U.S. persons and issuers as defined by the statute for the purpose of obtaining or retaining
business. Chinese anti-corruption law also strictly prohibits bribery of government officials. We have operations, agreements with
third parties and make sales in China, where corruption may occur. Our activities in China create the risk of unauthorized payments
or offers of payments by one of the employees, consultants, sales agents or distributors of our company, even though these parties
are not always subject to our control. It is our policy to implement safeguards to prevent these practices by our employees. However,
our existing safeguards and any future improvements may prove to be less than effective, and the employees, consultants, sales
agents or distributors of our company may engage in conduct for which we might be held responsible.
Violations of the FCPA
or other anti-corruption laws may result in severe criminal or civil sanctions, and we may be subject to other liabilities, which
could negatively affect our business, operating results and financial condition. In addition, the United States government may
seek to hold our company liable for successor liability FCPA violations committed by companies in which we invest or that we acquire.
Risk Factors Related to Clinical and Commercialization Activity
We may not be able to file INDs to commence
additional clinical trials on the timelines we expect, and even if we are able to do so, the FDA may not permit us to proceed.
Avalon has initiated its
first-in-human clinical trial of CD19 CAR-T candidate, AVA-001 in August 2019 at the Hebei Yanda Lu Daopei Hospital and Beijing
Lu Daopei Hospital in China (the world’s single largest CAR-T treatment network with over 600 patients being treated with
CAR-T) for the indication of relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. We hope to file
a number of investigational new drug applications, or INDs, for cell based therapies and diagnostic systems through INDs over the
next several years. However, the timing of our filing of these INDs is primarily dependent on receiving further data from our pre-clinical
studies, and our timing of filing on all product candidates is subject to further research. Additionally, our submission of INDs
is contingent upon having sufficient financial resources to prepare and complete the application.
We cannot be sure that
submission of an IND will result in the United States Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, allowing further clinical trials to
begin, or that, once begun, issues will not arise that result in the suspension or termination of such clinical trials. Any IND
we submit could be denied by the FDA or the FDA could place any future investigation of ours on clinical hold until we provide
additional information, either before or after clinical trials are initiated. Additionally, even if such regulatory authorities
agree with the design and implementation of the clinical trials set forth in an IND or clinical trial application, we cannot guarantee
that such regulatory authorities will not change their requirements in the future. Unfavorable future trial results or other factors,
such as insufficient capital to continue development of a product candidate or program, could also cause us to voluntarily withdraw
an effective IND.
We have limited experience in conducting
clinical trials.
We have limited human
clinical trial experience with respect to our product candidates. Although our CEO, Dr. David Jin, is formerly with the FDA, this
will not provide assurance of success. The clinical testing process is governed by stringent regulation and is highly complex,
costly, time-consuming, and uncertain as to outcome, and pharmaceutical products and products used in the regeneration of tissue
may invite particularly close scrutiny and requirements from the FDA and other regulatory bodies. Our failure or the failure of
our collaborators to conduct human clinical trials successfully or our failure to capitalize on the results of human clinical
trials for our product candidates would have a material adverse effect on us. If our clinical trials of our product candidates
or future product candidates do not sufficiently enroll or produce results necessary to support regulatory approval in the United
States or elsewhere, or if they show undesirable side effects, we will be unable to commercialize these product candidates.
21
To receive regulatory approval
for the commercial sale of our product candidates, we must conduct adequate and well-controlled clinical trials to demonstrate
efficacy and safety in humans. Clinical failure can occur at any stage of the testing. Our clinical trials may produce negative
or inconclusive results, and we may decide, or regulators may require us, to conduct additional clinical and/or non-clinical testing.
In addition, the results of our clinical trials may show that our product candidates are ineffective or may cause undesirable side
effects, which could interrupt, delay or halt clinical trials, resulting in the denial of regulatory approval by the FDA and other
regulatory authorities. In addition, negative, delayed or inconclusive results may result in:
●
the withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
●
the termination of clinical trial sites or entire trial programs;
●
costs of related litigation;
●
substantial monetary awards to patients or other claimants;
●
impairment of our business reputation;
●
loss of revenues; and
●
the inability to commercialize our product candidates.
Delays in the commencement, enrollment,
and completion of clinical testing could result in increased costs to us and delay or limit our ability to obtain regulatory approval
for our product candidates.
Delays in the commencement,
enrollment or completion of clinical testing could significantly affect our product development costs. A clinical trial may be
suspended or terminated by us, the FDA, or other regulatory authorities due to a number of factors. The commencement and completion
of clinical trials require us to identify and maintain a sufficient number of trial sites, many of which may already be engaged
in other clinical trial programs for the same indication as our product candidates. We may be required to withdraw from a clinical
trial as a result of changing standards of care, or we may become ineligible to participate in clinical studies. We do not know
whether planned clinical trials will begin on time or be completed on schedule, if at all. The commencement, enrollment and completion
of clinical trials can be delayed for a number of reasons, including, but not limited to, delays related to:
●
findings in pre-clinical studies;
●
reaching agreements on acceptable terms with prospective clinical research organizations, or CROs, and trial sites, the terms of which can be subject to extensive negotiation and may vary significantly among different CROs and trial sites;
●
obtaining regulatory approval to commence a clinical trial;
●
complying with conditions imposed by a regulatory authority regarding the scope or term of a clinical trial, or being required to conduct additional trials before moving on to the next phase of trials;
●
obtaining institutional review board, or IRB, approval to conduct a clinical trial at numerous prospective sites;
●
recruiting and enrolling patients to participate in clinical trials for a variety of reasons, including the size of the patient population, nature of trial protocol, meeting the enrollment criteria for our studies, screening failures, the inability of the sites to conduct trial procedures properly, the availability of approved effective treatments for the relevant disease and competition from other clinical trial programs for similar indications;
●
retaining patients who have initiated their participation in a clinical trial but may be prone to withdraw due to the treatment protocol, lack of efficacy, personal issues, or side effects from the therapy, or who are lost to further follow-up;
●
manufacturing sufficient quantities of a product candidate for use in clinical trials on a timely basis;
●
complying with design protocols of any applicable special protocol assessment we receive from the FDA;
●
severe or unexpected cell therapy side effects experienced by patients in a clinical trial;
●
collecting, analyzing and reporting final data from the clinical trials;
●
breaches in quality of manufacturing runs that compromise all or some of the doses made; positive results in FDA-required viral testing; karyotypic abnormalities in our cell product; or contamination in our manufacturing facilities, all of which events would necessitate disposal of all cells made from that source;
●
availability of materials provided by third parties necessary to manufacture our product candidates;
●
availability of adequate amounts of acceptable tissue for preparation of master cell banks for our products; and
●
requirements to conduct additional trials and studies, and increased expenses associated with the services of our CROs and other third parties.
22
If we are required to conduct
additional clinical trials or other testing of our product candidates beyond those that we currently contemplate, we or our development
partners, if any, may be delayed in obtaining, or may not be able to obtain or maintain, clinical or marketing approval for these
product candidates. We may not be able to obtain approval for indications that are as broad as intended, or we may be able to obtain
approval only for indications that are entirely different from those indications for which we sought approval.
Changes in regulatory requirements
and guidance may occur, and we may need to amend clinical trial protocols to reflect these changes with appropriate regulatory
authorities. Amendments may require us to resubmit our clinical trial protocols to IRBs for re-examination, which may impact the
costs, timing, or successful completion of a clinical trial. If we experience delays in the completion of, or if we terminate,
our clinical trials, the commercial prospects for our product candidates will be harmed, and our ability to generate product revenues
will be delayed. In addition, many of the factors that cause, or lead to, a delay in the commencement or completion of clinical
trials may also ultimately lead to the denial of regulatory approval of a product candidate. Even if we are able to ultimately
commercialize our product candidates, other therapies for the same or similar indications may have been introduced to the market
and already established a competitive advantage. Any delays in obtaining regulatory approvals may:
●
delay commercialization of, and our ability to derive product revenues from, our product candidates;
●
impose costly procedures on us; or
●
diminish any competitive advantages that we may otherwise enjoy.
Our success depends upon the viability of
our product candidates and we cannot be certain any of them will receive regulatory approval to be commercialized.
We will need FDA approval
to market and sell any of our product candidates in the United States and approvals from FDA-equivalent regulatory authorities
in foreign jurisdictions to commercialize our product candidates in those jurisdictions. In order to obtain FDA approval of any
of our product candidates, we must submit to the FDA a new drug application, or NDA, or a biologics license application, or BLA,
demonstrating that the product candidate is safe for humans and effective for its intended use. This demonstration requires significant
research and animal tests, which are referred to as pre-clinical studies, as well as human tests, which are referred to as clinical
trials. Satisfaction of the FDA’s regulatory requirements typically takes many years, depends upon the type, complexity,
and novelty of the product candidate, and requires substantial resources for research, development, testing and manufacturing.
We cannot predict whether our research and clinical approaches will result in cell therapies that the FDA considers safe for humans
and effective for indicated uses. The FDA has substantial discretion in the drug approval process and may require us to conduct
additional pre-clinical and clinical testing or to perform post-marketing studies. The approval process may also be delayed by
changes in government regulation, future legislation, administrative action or changes in FDA policy that occur prior to or during
our regulatory review.
Even if we comply with
all FDA requests, the FDA may ultimately reject one or more of our NDAs or BLAs, as applicable. We cannot be sure that we will
ever obtain regulatory clearance for our product candidates. Failure to obtain FDA approval of any of our product candidates will
reduce our number of potentially salable products and, therefore, corresponding product revenues, and will have a material and
adverse impact on our business.
As the results of earlier pre-clinical studies
or clinical trials are not necessarily predictive of future results, any product candidate we advance into clinical trials may
not have favorable results in later clinical trials or receive regulatory approval.
Even if our pre-clinical
studies and clinical trials are completed as planned, clinical trials, we cannot be certain that their results will support the
claims of our product candidates. Positive results in pre-clinical testing and early clinical trials do not ensure that results
from later clinical trials will also be positive, and we cannot be sure that the results of later clinical trials will replicate
the results of prior clinical trials and pre-clinical testing. A number of companies in the pharmaceutical industry, including
those with greater resources and experience, have suffered significant setbacks in Phase II or Phase III clinical trials, even
after seeing promising results in earlier clinical trials.
Our clinical trial process
may fail to demonstrate that our product candidates are safe for humans and effective for indicated uses. This failure would cause
us to abandon a product candidate and may delay development of other product candidates. Any delay in, or termination of, our clinical
trials will delay or cause us to refrain from the filing of our NDAs and/or BLAs with the FDA and, ultimately, our ability to commercialize
our product candidates and generate product revenues. In addition, our clinical trials to date involve small patient populations.
Because of the small sample size, the results of these clinical trials may not be indicative of future results.
Our business faces significant government
regulation, and there is no guarantee that our product candidates will receive regulatory approval.
Our research and development
activities, pre-clinical studies, anticipated human clinical trials, and anticipated manufacturing and marketing of our potential
products are subject to extensive regulation by the FDA and other regulatory authorities in the United States, as well as by regulatory
authorities in other countries. In the United States, our product candidates are subject to regulation as biological products
or as combination biological products/medical devices under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the Public Health Service
Act and other statutes, as outlined in the Code of Federal Regulations. Different regulatory requirements may apply to our products
depending on how they are categorized by the FDA under these laws. These regulations can be subject to substantial and significant
interpretation, addition, amendment or revision by the FDA and by the legislative process. The FDA may determine that we will
need to undertake clinical trials beyond those currently planned. Furthermore, the FDA may determine that results of clinical
trials do not support approval for the product. Similar determinations may be encountered in foreign countries. The FDA will continue
to monitor products in the market after approval, if any, and may determine to withdraw its approval or otherwise seriously affect
the marketing efforts for any such product. The same possibilities exist for trials to be conducted outside of the United States
that are subject to regulations established by local authorities and local law. Any such determinations would delay or deny the
introduction of our product candidates to the market and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition,
and results of operations.
23
Cell based therapeutics
are subject to ongoing periodic unannounced inspection by the FDA, the Drug Enforcement Agency, other federal agencies and corresponding
state agencies to ensure strict compliance with good manufacturing practices, and other government regulations and corresponding
foreign standards. We do not have control over third-party manufacturers’ compliance with these regulations and standards,
nor can we guarantee that we will maintain compliance with such regulations in regards to our own manufacturing processes. Other
risks include:
●
regulatory authorities may require the addition of labeling statements, specific warnings, a contraindication, or field alerts to physicians and pharmacies;
●
regulatory authorities may withdraw their approval of the IND or the product or require us to take our approved products off the market;
●
we may be required to change the way the product is manufactured or administered and we may be required to conduct additional clinical trials or change the labeling of our products;
●
we may have limitations on how we promote our products; and
●
we may be subject to litigation or product liability claims.
Even if our product candidates
receive regulatory approval in the United States, we may never receive approval or commercialize our product candidates outside
of the United States. In order to market and commercialize any product candidate outside of the United States, we must establish
and comply with numerous and varying regulatory requirements of other countries regarding manufacturing, safety and efficacy. Approval
procedures vary among countries and can involve additional product testing and additional administrative review periods. The time
required to obtain approval in other countries might differ from that required to obtain FDA approval. The regulatory approval
process in other countries may include all of the risks detailed above regarding FDA approval in the United States as well as other
risks. Regulatory approval in one country does not ensure regulatory approval in another, but a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory
approval in one country may have a negative effect on the regulatory approval process in others. Failure to obtain regulatory approval
in other countries, or any delay or setback in obtaining such approval, could have the same adverse effects detailed above regarding
FDA approval in the United States. Such effects include the risks that our product candidates may not be approved for all indications
requested, which could limit the uses of our product candidates and have an adverse effect on product sales and potential royalties,
and that such approval may be subject to limitations on the indicated uses for which the product may be marketed or require costly,
post-marketing follow-up studies.
Even if our product candidates receive regulatory
approval, we may still face future development and regulatory difficulties.
Even if U.S. regulatory
approval is obtained, the FDA may still impose significant restrictions on a product’s indicated uses or marketing, or impose
ongoing requirements for potentially costly post-approval studies. If any of our products were granted accelerated approval, FDA
could require post-marketing confirmatory trials to verify and describe the anticipated effect on irreversible morbidity or mortality
or other clinical benefit. FDA may withdraw approval of a drug or indication approved under the accelerated approval pathway if
a trial required to verify the predicted clinical benefit of the product fails to verify such benefit; other evidence demonstrates
that the product is not shown to be safe or effective under the conditions of use; the applicant fails to conduct any required
post-approval trial of the drug with due diligence; or the applicant disseminates false or misleading promotional materials relating
to the product. In addition, the FDA currently requires as a condition for accelerated approval the pre-approval of promotional
materials, which could adversely impact the timing of the commercial launch of the product.
Given the number of recent
high-profile adverse safety events with certain drug and cell related products, the FDA may require, as a condition of approval,
costly risk management programs, which may include safety surveillance, restricted distribution and use, patient education, enhanced
labeling, special packaging or labeling, expedited reporting of certain adverse events, pre-approval of promotional materials,
and restrictions on direct-to-consumer advertising. Furthermore, heightened Congressional scrutiny on the adequacy of the FDA’s
drug approval process and the FDA’s efforts to assure the safety of marketed cell based therapy has resulted in the proposal
of new legislation addressing drug safety issues. If enacted, any new legislation could result in delays or increased costs during
the period of product development, clinical trials, and regulatory review and approval, as well as increased costs to assure compliance
with any new post-approval regulatory requirements. Any of these restrictions or requirements could force us to conduct costly
studies or increase the time for us to become profitable. For example, any labeling approved for any of our product candidates
may include a restriction on the term of its use, or it may not include one or more of our intended indications.
Our product candidates
will also be subject to ongoing FDA requirements for the labeling, packaging, storage, advertising, promotion, record-keeping,
and submission of safety and other post-market information on the cell based therapy. New issues may arise during a product lifecycle
that did not exist, or were unknown, at the time of product approval, such as adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency,
or problems with the facility where the product is manufactured. Since approved products, manufacturers, and manufacturers’
facilities are subject to continuous review and periodic inspections, these new issues post-approval may result in voluntary actions
by us or may result in a regulatory agency imposing restrictions on that product or us, including requiring withdrawal of the product
from the market or for use in a clinical study. If our product candidates fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements,
such as good manufacturing practices, a regulatory agency may:
●
issue warning letters;
●
require us to enter into a consent decree, which can include imposition of various fines, reimbursements for inspection costs, required due dates for specific actions, and penalties for noncompliance;
●
impose other civil or criminal penalties;
●
suspend regulatory approval;
24
●
suspend any ongoing clinical trials;
●
refuse to approve pending applications or supplements to approved applications filed by us;
●
impose restrictions on operations, including costly new manufacturing requirements; or
●
seize or detain products or require a product recall.
If we or current or future collaborators,
manufacturers, or service providers fail to comply with healthcare laws and regulations, we or they could be subject to enforcement
actions and substantial penalties, which could affect our ability to develop, market and sell our products and may harm our reputation.
Although we do not currently
have any products on the market, once our therapeutic candidates or clinical trials are covered by federal health care programs,
we will be subject to additional healthcare statutory and regulatory requirements and enforcement by the federal, state and foreign
governments of the jurisdictions in which we conduct our business. Healthcare providers, physicians and third party payors play
a primary role in the recommendation and prescription of any therapeutic candidates for which we obtain marketing approval. Our
future arrangements with third party payors and customers may expose us to broadly applicable fraud and abuse, transparency, and
other healthcare laws and regulations that may constrain the business or financial arrangements and relationships through which
we market, sell and distribute our therapeutic candidates for which we obtain marketing approval. Restrictions under applicable
federal and state healthcare laws and regulations include, but are not limited to, the following:
●
the U.S. federal Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits, among other things, persons from soliciting, receiving, offering or providing remuneration, directly or indirectly, to induce either the referral of an individual for a healthcare item or service, or the purchasing or ordering of an item or service, for which payment may be made, in whole or in part, under a federal healthcare program such as Medicare or Medicaid;
●
federal civil and criminal false claims laws and civil monetary penalty laws, such as the U.S. federal FCA, which imposes criminal and civil penalties, including through civil whistleblower or qui tam actions, against, individuals or entities for knowingly presenting or causing to be presented, to the federal government, claims for payment that are false or fraudulent or making a false statement to avoid, decrease or conceal an obligation to pay money to the federal government. In addition, the government may assert that a claim including items and services resulting from a violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the FCA;
●
HIPAA includes a fraud and abuse provision referred to as the HIPAA All-Payor Fraud Law, which imposes criminal and civil liability for executing a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program, or knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up a material fact or making any materially false statement in connection with the delivery of or payment for healthcare benefits, items or services. Similar to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, a person or entity does not need to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation;
●
HIPAA, as amended by HITECH, and its implementing regulations, which impose obligations on certain covered entity healthcare providers, health plans, and healthcare clearinghouses as well as their business associates that perform certain services involving the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information, including mandatory contractual terms, with respect to safeguarding, the privacy, security, and transmission of individually identifiable health information, and require notification to affected individuals and regulatory authorities of certain breaches of security of individually identifiable health information;
●
federal and state consumer protection and unfair competition laws, which broadly regulate marketplace activities and activities that potentially harm consumers;
●
the federal Physician Payment Sunshine Act and the implementing regulations, also referred to as “Open Payments,” issued under the ACA, which require that manufacturers of pharmaceutical and biological drugs reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance Programs report to the Department of Health and Human Services all consulting fees, travel reimbursements, research grants, and other payments, transfers of value or gifts made to physicians and teaching hospitals with limited exceptions; and
●
analogous state laws and regulations, such as, state anti-kickback and false claims laws potentially applicable to sales or marketing arrangements and claims involving healthcare items or services reimbursed by nongovernmental third party payors, including private insurers; and some state laws require pharmaceutical companies to comply with the pharmaceutical industry’s voluntary compliance guidelines and the relevant compliance guidance promulgated by the federal government in addition to requiring drug and cell based therapy manufacturers to report information related to payments to physicians and other healthcare providers or marketing expenditures, and state laws governing the privacy and security of health information in certain circumstances, many of which differ from each other in significant ways and often are not preempted by HIPAA, thus complicating compliance efforts.
The scope and enforcement
of each of these laws is uncertain and subject to rapid change in the current environment of healthcare reform, especially in
light of the lack of applicable precedent and regulations. Federal and state enforcement bodies have recently increased their
scrutiny of interactions between healthcare companies and healthcare providers, which has led to a number of investigations, prosecutions,
convictions and settlements in the healthcare industry. Responding to investigations can be time-and resource-consuming and can
divert management’s attention from the business. Any such investigation or settlement could increase our costs or otherwise
have an adverse effect on our business.
25
Ensuring that our business
arrangements with third-parties comply with applicable healthcare laws and regulations could involve substantial costs. If our
operations are found to be in violation of any such requirements, we may be subject to penalties, including civil or criminal penalties,
monetary damages, the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, or exclusion from participation in government contracting,
healthcare reimbursement or other government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, any of which could adversely affect our
financial results. Although effective compliance programs can mitigate the risk of investigation and prosecution for violations
of these laws, these risks cannot be entirely eliminated. Any action against us for an alleged or suspected violation could cause
us to incur significant legal expenses and could divert our management’s attention from the operation of our business, even
if our defense is successful. In addition, achieving and sustaining compliance with applicable laws and regulations may be costly
to us in terms of money, time and resources.
Any cell based therapies we develop may
become subject to unfavorable pricing regulations, third party coverage and reimbursement practices or healthcare reform initiatives,
thereby harming our business.
The regulations that govern
marketing approvals, pricing, coverage and reimbursement for new drugs and cell based therapies vary widely from country to country.
Some countries require approval of the sale price of a drug before it can be marketed. In many countries, the pricing review period
begins after marketing or product licensing approval is granted. In some foreign markets, prescription pharmaceutical pricing remains
subject to continuing governmental control even after initial approval is granted. Although we intend to monitor these regulations,
our programs are currently in earlier stages of development and we will not be able to assess the impact of price regulations for
a number of years. As a result, we might obtain regulatory approval for a product in a particular country, but then be subject
to price regulations that delay our commercial launch of the product and negatively impact the revenues we are able to generate
from the sale of the product in that country.
Our ability to commercialize
any products successfully also will depend in part on the extent to which coverage and reimbursement for these products and related
treatments will be available from government health administration authorities, private health insurers and other organizations.
However, there may be significant delays in obtaining coverage for newly-approved cell based therapies. Moreover, eligibility for
coverage does not necessarily signify that a cell based therapy will be reimbursed in all cases or at a rate that covers our costs,
including research, development, manufacture, sale and distribution costs. Also, interim payments for new cell based therapy if
applicable, may be insufficient to cover our costs and may not be made permanent. Thus, even if we succeed in bringing one or more
products to the market, these products may not be considered medically necessary or cost-effective, and the amount reimbursed for
any products may be insufficient to allow us to sell our products on a competitive basis. Because our programs are in earlier stages
of development, we are unable at this time to determine their cost effectiveness, or the likely level or method of reimbursement.
In addition, obtaining coverage and reimbursement approval of a product from a government or other third-party payor is a time-consuming
and costly process that could require us to provide to each payor supporting scientific, clinical and cost-effectiveness data for
the use of our product on a payor-by-payor basis, with no assurance that coverage and adequate reimbursement will be obtained.
A payor’s decision to provide coverage for a product does not imply that an adequate reimbursement rate will be approved.
Further, one payor’s determination to provide coverage for a product does not assure that other payors will also provide
coverage for the product. Adequate third-party reimbursement may not be available to enable us to maintain price levels sufficient
to realize an appropriate return on our investment in product development. If reimbursement is not available or is available only
at limited levels, we may not be able to successfully commercialize any product candidate that we successfully develop.
Increasingly, the third
party payors who reimburse patients or healthcare providers, such as government and private insurance plans, are seeking greater
upfront discounts, additional rebates and other concessions to reduce the prices for pharmaceutical products. If the price we are
able to charge for any products we develop, or the reimbursement provided for such products, is inadequate in light of our development
and other costs, our return on investment could be adversely affected.
We currently expect that
certain drugs we develop may need to be administered under the supervision of a physician on an outpatient basis. Under currently
applicable U.S. law, certain drugs that are not usually self-administered (including injectable cell based therapies) may be eligible
for coverage under Medicare through Medicare Part B. Specifically, Medicare Part B coverage may be available for eligible beneficiaries
when the following, among other requirements have been satisfied:
●
the product is reasonable and necessary for the diagnosis or treatment of the illness or injury for which the product is administered according to accepted standards of medical practice;
●
the product is typically furnished incident to a physician’s services;
●
the indication for which the product will be used is included or approved for inclusion in certain Medicare-designated pharmaceutical compendia (when used for an off-label use); and
●
the product has been approved by the FDA.
Average prices for cell
therapies may be reduced by mandatory discounts or rebates required by government healthcare programs or private payors and by
any future relaxation of laws that presently restrict imports of drugs and cell based therapy from countries where they may be
sold at lower prices than in the U.S. Reimbursement rates under Medicare Part B would depend in part on whether the newly approved
product would be eligible for a unique billing code. Self-administered, outpatient drugs and cell based therapies are typically
reimbursed under Medicare Part D, and cell based therapies that are administered in an inpatient hospital setting are typically
reimbursed under Medicare Part A under a bundled payment. It is difficult for us to predict how Medicare coverage and reimbursement
policies will be applied to our products in the future and coverage and reimbursement under different federal healthcare programs
are not always consistent. Medicare reimbursement rates may also reflect budgetary constraints placed on the Medicare program.
26
Third party payors often
rely upon Medicare coverage policies and payment limitations in setting their own reimbursement rates. These coverage policies
and limitations may rely, in part, on compendia listings for approved therapeutics. Our inability to promptly obtain relevant compendia
listings, coverage, and adequate reimbursement from both government-funded and private payors for new cell based therapies that
we develop and for which we obtain regulatory approval could have a material adverse effect on our operating results, our ability
to raise capital needed to commercialize products and our financial condition.
We expect that these and
other healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in more rigorous coverage criteria and lower reimbursement,
and in additional downward pressure on the price that we receive for any approved product. Any reduction in reimbursement from
Medicare or other government-funded programs may result in a similar reduction in payments from private payors. The implementation
of cost containment measures or other healthcare reforms may prevent us from being able to generate revenue, attain profitability
or commercialize our cell based therapies, once marketing approval is obtained.
We believe that the efforts
of governments and third party payors to contain or reduce the cost of healthcare and legislative and regulatory proposals to broaden
the availability of healthcare will continue to affect the business and financial condition of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical
companies. A number of legislative and regulatory changes in the healthcare system in the U.S. and other major healthcare markets
have been proposed, and such efforts have expanded substantially in recent years. These developments could, directly or indirectly,
affect our ability to sell our products, if approved, at a favorable price. For example, in the United States, in 2010, the U.S.
Congress passed the ACA, a sweeping law intended to broaden access to health insurance, reduce or constrain the growth of health
spending, enhance remedies against fraud and abuse, add new transparency requirements for the healthcare and health insurance industries,
impose new taxes and fees on the health industry and impose additional policy reforms. Among the provisions of the ACA addressing
coverage and reimbursement of pharmaceutical products, of importance to our potential therapeutic candidates are the following:
●
increases to pharmaceutical manufacturer rebate liability under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program due to an increase in the minimum basic Medicaid rebate on most branded prescription drugs and the application of Medicaid rebate liability to drugs used in risk-based Medicaid managed care plans;
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the expansion of the 340B Drug Pricing Program to require discounts for “covered outpatient drugs” sold to certain children’s hospitals, critical access hospitals, freestanding cancer hospitals, rural referral centers, and sole community hospitals;
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requirements imposed on pharmaceutical companies are required to offer discounts on brand-name cell based therapy to patients who fall within the Medicare Part D coverage gap, commonly referred to as the “Donut Hole”;
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requirements imposed on pharmaceutical companies to pay an annual non-tax-deductible fee to the federal government based on each company’s market share of prior year total sales of branded drugs to certain federal healthcare programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid, Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense; and
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for products classified as biologics, marketing approval for a follow-on biologic product may not become effective until 12 years after the date on which the reference innovator biologic product was first licensed by the FDA, with a possible six-month extension for pediatric products. After this exclusivity ends, it may be possible for biosimilar manufacturers to enter the market, which is likely to reduce the pricing for the innovator product and could affect our profitability if our products are classified as biologics.
Separately, pursuant to
the health reform legislation and related initiatives, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, is working with
various healthcare providers to develop, refine, and implement Accountable Care Organizations, or ACOs, and other innovative models
of care for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, including the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Initiative, the Comprehensive
Primary Care Initiative, the Duals Demonstration, and other models. The continued development and expansion of ACOs and other innovative
models of care will have an uncertain impact on any future reimbursement we may receive for approved therapeutics administered
by these organizations.
The healthcare industry is heavily regulated
in the U.S. at the federal, state, and local levels, and our failure to comply with applicable requirements may subject us to penalties
and negatively affect our financial condition.
As a healthcare company,
our operations, clinical trial activities and interactions with healthcare providers may be subject to extensive regulation in
the U.S., particularly if we receive FDA approval for any of its products in the future. For example, if we receive FDA approval
for a product for which reimbursement is available under a federal healthcare program (e.g., Medicare, Medicaid), it would be subject
to a variety of federal laws and regulations, including those that prohibit the filing of false or improper claims for payment
by federal healthcare programs (e.g. the federal False Claims Act), prohibit unlawful inducements for the referral of business
reimbursable by federal healthcare programs (e.g. the federal Anti-Kickback Statute), and require disclosure of certain payments
or other transfers of value made to U.S.-licensed physicians and teaching hospitals or Open Payments. We are not able to predict
how third parties will interpret these laws and apply applicable governmental guidance and may challenge our practices and activities
under one or more of these laws. If our past or present operations are found to be in violation of any of these laws, we could
be subject to civil and criminal penalties, which could hurt our business, our operations and financial condition.
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The federal Anti-Kickback
Statute prohibits, among other things, any person or entity, from knowingly and willfully offering, paying, soliciting or receiving
any remuneration, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, to induce or in return for purchasing, leasing,
ordering or arranging for the purchase, lease or order of any item or service reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid or other federal
healthcare programs. The term remuneration has been interpreted broadly to include anything of value. The Anti-Kickback Statute
has been interpreted to apply to arrangements between pharmaceutical manufacturers on one hand and prescribers, purchasers, and
formulary managers on the other. There are a number of statutory exceptions and regulatory safe harbors protecting some common
activities from prosecution. The exceptions and safe harbors are drawn narrowly and practices that involve remuneration that may
be alleged to be intended to induce prescribing, purchasing or recommending may be subject to scrutiny if they do not qualify for
an exception or safe harbor. Failure to meet all of the requirements of a particular applicable statutory exception or regulatory
safe harbor does not make the conduct per se illegal under the Anti-Kickback Statute. Instead, the legality of the arrangement
will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis based on a cumulative review of all of its facts and circumstances. Our practices may
not in all cases meet all of the criteria for protection under a statutory exception or regulatory safe harbor.
Additionally, the intent
standard under the Anti-Kickback Statute was amended by the ACA, to a stricter standard such that a person or entity no longer
needs to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it in order to have committed a violation. In addition,
the ACA codified case law that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of the federal Anti- Kickback Statute
constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the federal FCA.
The civil monetary penalties
statute imposes penalties against any person or entity that, among other things, is determined to have presented or caused to be
presented a claim to a federal healthcare program that the person knows or should know is for an item or service that was not provided
as claimed or is false or fraudulent.
Federal false claims and
false statement laws, including the federal FCA, prohibit, among other things, any person or entity from knowingly presenting,
or causing to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment to, or approval by, the federal healthcare programs, including
Medicare and Medicaid, or knowingly making, using, or causing to be made or used a false record or statement material to a false
or fraudulent claim to the federal government. A claim includes “any request or demand” for money or property presented
to the U.S. government. For instance, historically, pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies have been prosecuted under these
laws for allegedly providing free product to customers with the expectation that the customers would bill federal programs for
the product. Other companies have been prosecuted for causing false claims to be submitted because of the companies’ marketing
of the product for unapproved, off-label, and thus generally non-reimbursable, uses.
HIPAA prohibits, among
other offenses, knowingly and willfully executing a scheme to defraud any health care benefit program, including private payors,
or falsifying, concealing or covering up a material fact or making any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement in
connection with the delivery of or payment for items or services under a health care benefit program. To the extent that we act
as a business associate to a healthcare provider engaging in electronic transactions, we may also be subject to the privacy and
security provisions of HIPAA, as amended by HITECH, which restricts the use and disclosure of patient-identifiable health information,
mandates the adoption of standards relating to the privacy and security of patient-identifiable health information, and requires
the reporting of certain security breaches to healthcare provider customers with respect to such information. Additionally, many
states have enacted similar laws that may impose more stringent requirements on entities like ours. Failure to comply with applicable
laws and regulations could result in substantial penalties and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
Many states also have similar
fraud and abuse statutes or regulations that apply to items and services reimbursed under Medicaid and other state programs, or,
in several states, apply regardless of the payor. Additionally, to the extent that our product is sold in a foreign country, we
may be subject to similar foreign laws.
Our products, once approved,
may be eligible for coverage under Medicare and Medicaid, among other government healthcare programs. Accordingly, we may be subject
to a number of obligations based on their participation in these programs, such as a requirement to calculate and report certain
price reporting metrics to the government, such as average sales price (ASP) and best price. Penalties may apply in some cases
when such metrics are not submitted accurately and timely. Further, these prices for drugs may be reduced by mandatory discounts
or rebates required by government healthcare programs or private payors and by any future relaxation of laws that presently restrict
imports of drugs and biological products from countries where they may be sold at lower prices than in the United States. It is
difficult to predict how Medicare coverage and reimbursement policies will be applied to our products in the future and coverage
and reimbursement under different federal healthcare programs are not always consistent. Medicare reimbursement rates may also
reflect budgetary constraints placed on the Medicare program.
In order to distribute
products commercially, we must comply with state laws that require the registration of manufacturers and wholesale distributors
of drug and biological products in a state, including, in certain states, manufacturers and distributors who ship products into
the state even if such manufacturers or distributors have no place of business within the state. Some states also impose requirements
on manufacturers and distributors to establish the pedigree of product in the chain of distribution, including some states that
require manufacturers and others to adopt new technology capable of tracking and tracing product as it moves through the distribution
chain. Several states have enacted legislation requiring pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to establish marketing compliance
programs, file periodic reports with the state, make periodic public disclosures on sales, marketing, pricing, clinical trials
and other activities, and/or register their sales representatives, as well as to prohibit pharmacies and other healthcare entities
from providing certain physician prescribing data to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for use in sales and marketing,
and to prohibit certain other sales and marketing practices. All of our activities are potentially subject to federal and state
consumer protection and unfair competition laws.
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If our operations are found
to be in violation of any of the federal and state healthcare laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply
to us, we may be subject to penalties, including without limitation, civil, criminal and/or administrative penalties, damages,
fines, disgorgement, exclusion from participation in government programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, injunctions, private “qui
tam” actions brought by individual whistleblowers in the name of the government, or refusal to allow us to enter into government
contracts, contractual damages, reputational harm, administrative burdens, diminished profits and future earnings, and the curtailment
or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of
operations.
Our ability to obtain reimbursement or funding
from the federal government may be impacted by possible reductions in federal spending.
U.S. federal government
agencies currently face potentially significant spending reductions. The Budget Control Act of 2011, or the BCA, established a
Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, which was tasked with achieving a reduction in the federal debt level of at least
$1.2 trillion. That committee did not draft a proposal by the BCA’s deadline. As a result, automatic cuts, referred to as
sequestration, in various federal programs were scheduled to take place, beginning in January 2013, although the American Taxpayer
Relief Act of 2012 delayed the BCA’s automatic cuts until March 1, 2013. While the Medicare program’s eligibility and
scope of benefits are generally exempt from these cuts, Medicare payments to providers and Part D health plans are not exempt.
The BCA did, however, provide that the Medicare cuts to providers and Part D health plans would not exceed two percent. President
Obama issued the sequestration order on March 1, 2013, and cuts went into effect on April 1, 2013. Additionally, the Bipartisan
Budget Act of 2015 extended sequestration for Medicare through fiscal year 2027.
The U.S. federal budget
remains in flux, which could, among other things, cut Medicare payments to providers. The Medicare program is frequently mentioned
as a target for spending cuts. The full impact on our business of any future cuts in Medicare or other programs is uncertain. In
addition, we cannot predict any impact President Trump’s administration and the U.S. Congress may have on the federal budget.
If federal spending is reduced, anticipated budgetary shortfalls may also impact the ability of relevant agencies, such as the
FDA or the National Institutes of Health, to continue to function at current levels. Amounts allocated to federal grants and contracts
may be reduced or eliminated. These reductions may also impact the ability of relevant agencies to timely review and approve drug
research and development, manufacturing, and marketing activities, which may delay our ability to develop, market and sell any
products we may develop.
Risks Related to Doing Business in China
If we become directly subject to the recent
scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity involving certain U.S.-listed Chinese companies, we may have to expend significant resources
to investigate and resolve the matter which could harm our business operations, stock price and reputation and could result in
a loss of your investment in our stock, especially if such matter cannot be addressed and resolved quickly.
Recently, U.S. public companies
that have substantially all of their operations in China, particularly companies like us which have completed so-called reverse
merger transactions, have been the subject of intense scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity by investors, short sellers, financial
commentators and regulatory agencies, such as the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Much of the scrutiny, criticism
and negative publicity has centered around financial and accounting irregularities and mistakes, inadequate corporate governance
policies or a lack of adherence thereto and, in many cases, allegations of fraud. As a result of the scrutiny, criticism and negative
publicity, the publicly traded stock of many U.S. listed Chinese companies has sharply decreased in value and, in some cases, has
become virtually worthless. Many of these companies are now subject to shareholder lawsuits, SEC enforcement actions and are conducting
internal and external investigations into the allegations. It is not clear what affect this sector-wide scrutiny, criticism and
negative publicity will have on our company, our business and our stock price. If we become the subject of any unfavorable allegations,
whether such allegations are proven to be true or untrue, we will have to expend significant resources to investigate such allegations
and/or defend our company. This situation could be costly and time consuming and distract our management from growing our company.
If such allegations are not proven to be groundless, our company and business operations will be severely impacted and your investment
in our stock could be rendered worthless.
Adverse changes in political and economic policies of the PRC
government could impede the overall economic growth of China, which could reduce the demand for our products and damage our business.
Presently, we generate
our revenue in China although we intend to pursue various opportunities in the United States and our headquarters is based in the
United States. Accordingly, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects are affected significantly by
economic, political and legal developments in China. The PRC economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in
many respects, including:
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the higher level of government involvement;
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the early stage of development of the market-oriented sector of the economy;
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the rapid growth rate;
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the higher level of control over foreign exchange; and
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the allocation of resources.
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As the PRC economy has
been transitioning from a planned economy to a more market-oriented economy, the PRC government has implemented various measures
to encourage economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. While these measures may benefit the overall PRC economy, they
may also have a negative effect on us or the healthcare industry in general.
Although the PRC government
has in recent years implemented measures emphasizing the utilization of market forces for economic reform, the PRC government continues
to exercise significant control over economic growth in China through the allocation of resources, controlling payment of foreign
currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy and imposing policies that impact particular industries or companies
in different ways.
Any adverse change in the
economic conditions or government policies in China could have a material adverse effect on the overall economic growth and the
level of new healthcare investments and expenditures in China, which in turn could lead to a reduction in demand for our services
and consequently have a material adverse effect on our business and prospects.
Uncertainties with respect to the PRC legal
system could limit the legal protections available to you and us.
We conduct substantially
all of our business through our operating subsidiaries in the PRC. Our operating subsidiaries are generally subject to laws and
regulations applicable to foreign investments in China and, in particular, laws applicable to foreign-invested enterprises. The
PRC legal system is based on written statutes, and prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential
value. Since 1979, a series of new PRC laws and regulations have significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms
of foreign investments in China. However, since the PRC legal system continues to rapidly evolve, the interpretations of many laws,
regulations and rules are not always uniform and enforcement of these laws, regulations and rules involve uncertainties, which
may limit legal protections available to you and us. In addition, any litigation in China may be protracted and result in substantial
costs and diversion of resources and management attention. In addition, all of our executive officers and almost all of our directors
are residents of China and not of the United States, and substantially all the assets of these persons are located outside the
United States. As a result, it could be difficult for investors to affect service of process in the United States or to enforce
a judgment obtained in the United States against our Chinese operations and subsidiaries.
The PRC government exerts substantial influence
over the manner in which we must conduct our business activities.
The PRC government has
exercised and continues to exercise substantial control over virtually every sector of the Chinese economy through regulation and
state ownership. Our ability to operate in China may be harmed by changes in its laws and regulations. We believe that our operations
in China are in material compliance with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements. However, the central or local governments
of the jurisdictions in which we operate may impose new, stricter regulations or interpretations of existing regulations that would
require additional expenditures and efforts on our part to ensure our compliance with such regulations or interpretations.
Accordingly, government
actions in the future, including any decision not to continue to support recent economic reforms and to return to a more centrally
planned economy or regional or local variations in the implementation of economic policies, could have a significant effect on
economic conditions in China or particular regions thereof.
We may be unable to complete a business
combination transaction efficiently or on favorable terms due to complicated merger and acquisition regulations implemented on
September 8, 2006.
The recent PRC Regulation
on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Companies by Foreign Investors also governs the approval process by which a PRC company
may participate in an acquisition of its assets or its equity interests. Depending on the structure of the transaction, the new
regulation will require the Chinese parties to make a series of applications and supplemental applications to the government agencies.
In some instances, the application process may require the presentation of economic data concerning a transaction, including appraisals
of the target business and evaluations of the acquirer, which are designed to allow the government to assess the transaction. Government
approvals will have expiration dates by which a transaction must be completed and reported to the government agencies. Compliance
with the new regulations is likely to be more time consuming and expensive than in the past and the government can now exert more
control over the combination of two businesses. Accordingly, due to the new regulation, our ability to engage in business combination
transactions is extremely complicated, time consuming and expensive, and we may not be able to negotiate a transaction that is
acceptable to our stockholders or sufficiently protect their interests in a transaction.
The new regulation allows
PRC government agencies to assess the economic terms of a business combination transaction. Parties to a business combination transaction
may have to submit to the Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, and the other government agencies an appraisal report, an evaluation
report and the acquisition agreement, all of which form part of the application for approval, depending on the structure of the
transaction. The regulations also prohibit a transaction at an acquisition price obviously lower than the appraised value of the
Chinese business or assets and in certain transaction structures, require that consideration must be paid within defined periods,
generally not in excess of a year. The regulation also limits our ability to negotiate various terms of the acquisition, including
aspects of the initial consideration, contingent consideration, holdback provisions, indemnification provisions and provisions
relating to the assumption and allocation of assets and liabilities. Transaction structures involving trusts, nominees and similar
entities are prohibited. Therefore, such regulation may impede our ability to negotiate and complete a business combination transaction
on financial terms that satisfy our investors and protect our stockholders’ economic interests.
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Under the current Enterprise Income Tax,
or EIT, law, we may be classified as a “resident enterprise” of China. Such classification will likely result in unfavorable
tax consequences to us and our non- PRC stockholders.
We are a holding company
incorporated under the laws of Delaware. We conduct substantially all of our business through our wholly-owned and majority-owned
subsidiaries, and we derive all of our income from these entities. Prior to January 1, 2008, dividends derived by foreign enterprises
from business operations in China were not subject to the Chinese enterprise income tax. However, such tax exemption ceased as
of January 1, 2008 and thereafter with the effectiveness of the new EIT law.
Under the EIT law, if we
are not deemed to be a “resident enterprise” for Chinese tax purposes, a withholding tax at the rate of 10% would be
applicable to any dividends paid by our Chinese subsidiaries to us. However, if we are deemed to be a “resident enterprise”
established outside of China whose “place of effective management” is located in China, we would be classified as a
resident enterprise for Chinese tax purposes and thus would be subject to an enterprise income tax rate of 25% on all of our income
on a worldwide basis.
The regulations promulgated
pursuant to the EIT law define the term “place of effective management” as “establishments that carry out substantial
and overall management and control over the manufacturing and business operations, personnel, accounting, properties, etc. of an
enterprise.” The State Administration of Taxation issued a SAT Circular 82 on April 22, 2009, which provides that the “place
of effective management” of a Chinese-controlled overseas-incorporated enterprise is located in China if the following requirements
are satisfied: (i) the senior management and core management departments in charge of its daily operations function are mainly
located in the PRC; (ii) its financial and human resources decisions are subject to determination or approval by persons or bodies
located in the PRC; (iii) its major assets, accounting books, company seals, and minutes and files of its board and shareholders’
meetings are located or kept in the PRC; and (iv) no less than half of the enterprise’s directors or senior management with
voting rights reside in the PRC. SAT Circular 82 applies only to overseas registered enterprises controlled by PRC enterprises,
not to those controlled by PRC individuals. If our non-PRC incorporated entities are deemed PRC tax residents, such entities would
be subject to PRC tax under the EIT law.
We have analyzed the applicability
of the EIT law and related regulations, and for each of the applicable periods presented, we have not accrued for PRC tax on such
basis. In addition, although under the EIT law and the related regulations dividends paid to us by our PRC subsidiaries would qualify
as “tax-exempted income,” we cannot assure you that such dividends will not be subject to a 10% withholding tax, as
the PRC foreign exchange control authorities, which enforce the withholding tax, have not yet issued guidance with respect to the
processing of outbound remittances to entities that are treated as resident enterprises for PRC enterprise income tax purposes.
As a result of such changes, our historical operating results will not be indicative of our operating results for future periods
and the value of our shares of common stock may be adversely affected. We are actively monitoring the possibility of “resident
enterprise” treatment and are evaluating appropriate organizational changes to avoid this treatment, to the extent possible.
We may be subject to fines and legal sanctions
if we or our Chinese employees fail to comply with PRC regulations relating to employee stock options granted by overseas listed
companies to PRC citizens.
On December 25, 2006, the
People’s Bank of China issued the Administration Measures on Individual Foreign Exchange Control, and its Implementation
Rules were issued by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, on January 5, 2007. Both took effect on February 1,
2007. Under these regulations, all foreign exchange matters involved in an employee stock holding plan, stock option plan or similar
plan in which PRC citizens’ participation requires approval from the SAFE or its authorized branch. On March 28, 2007, the
SAFE issued the Application Procedure for Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Employee Stock
Holding Plans or Stock Option Plans of Overseas Listed Companies, or Notice 78. Under Notice 78, PRC individuals who participate
in an employee stock option holding plan or a stock option plan of an overseas listed company are required, through a PRC domestic
agent or PRC subsidiary of the overseas listed company, to register with the SAFE and complete certain other procedures. If we
and our Chinese employees are granted shares or stock options pursuant to our share incentive plan they would be subject to Notice
78. However, in practice, there are significant uncertainties with regard to the interpretation and implementation of Notice 78.
We are committed to complying with the requirements of Notice 78. However, we cannot provide any assurance that we or our Chinese
employees will be able to qualify for or obtain any registration required by Notice 78. In particular, if we and/or our Chinese
employees fail to comply with the provisions of Notice 78, we and/or our Chinese employees may be subject to fines and legal sanctions
imposed by the SAFE or other PRC government authorities, as a result of which our business operations and employee option plans
could be materially and adversely affected.
The new M&A Rules establish more complex
procedures for some acquisitions of Chinese companies by foreign investor which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth
through acquisitions in China.
The New M&A Rules that
became effective on September 8, 2006 established additional procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition
activities by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex, including requirements in some instances that the Ministry of
Commerce be notified in advance of any change- of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic
enterprise. Complying with the requirements of the M&A Rules to complete such transactions could be time-consuming, and any
required approval processes, including obtaining approval from the Ministry of Commerce, may delay or inhibit our ability to complete
such transactions, which could materially adversely affect our ability to grow our business through acquisitions in China.
Government control of currency conversion
and future movements in exchange rates may adversely affect our operations and financial results.
The value of the Renminbi,
or RMB, the main currency used in China, fluctuates and is affected by, among other things, changes in China’s political
and economic conditions. The conversion of RMB into foreign currencies such as the U.S. dollar have generally been based on rates
set by the People’s Bank of China, which are set daily based on the previous day’s interbank foreign exchange market
rates and current exchange rates on the world financial markets. Foreign exchange transactions continue to be subject to significant
foreign exchange controls and require the approval of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange in China. These limitations
could affect our ability to obtain foreign exchange through debt or equity financing, or to obtain foreign exchange for capital
expenditures.
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The Chinese government
controls its foreign currency reserves through restrictions on imports and conversion of RMB into foreign currency. In July 2005,
the Chinese government has adjusted its exchange rate policy from “Fixed Rate” to “Floating Rate”. Between
July 2005 to December 2017, the exchange rate between the RMB and the U.S. dollar appreciated from RMB1.00 to $0.1205 to RMB1.00
to $0.1513. Any significant appreciation of the RMB may adversely affect our operations and financial results.
Risks Related to Our Securities
The price of our common stock may be volatile
and fluctuate substantially, which could result in substantial losses for our stockholders.
Our common stock has been
listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “AVCO” since November 5, 2018. Our common shares were traded previously
on the OTC Market Group Inc.’s Venture Market (the “OTCQB”) since February 22, 2016, under the symbol “AVCO”
since October 18, 2016 and “GTHC” prior to October 18, 2016.
The price of our common
stock has been, and we expect it to continue to be, volatile. The stock market in general and the market for smaller healthcare
companies in particular have experienced extreme volatility that has often been unrelated to the operating performance of particular
companies. As a result of this volatility, you may not be able to sell your shares of common stock at or above the price you paid
for your shares of common stock. The market price for our common stock may be influenced by many factors, including:
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the success of competitive products or technologies;
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developments related to our existing or any future collaborations;
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regulatory or legal developments in the United States, China and other countries;
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developments or disputes concerning patent applications, issued patents or other proprietary rights;
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the recruitment or departure of key personnel;
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actual or anticipated changes in estimates as to financial results or recommendations by securities analysts;
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variations in our financial results or those of companies that are perceived to be similar to us;
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changes in the structure of healthcare payment systems;
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market conditions in the healthcare, pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors;
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general economic, industry and market conditions; and
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the other factors described in this “Risk Factors” section.
Future sales of our common stock or securities
convertible or exchangeable for our common stock may cause our stock price to decline.
If our existing stockholders
sell, or indicate an intention to sell, substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market, the price of our common stock
could decline. The perception in the market that these sales may occur could also cause the price of our common stock to decline.
In addition, as of December
31, 2020, 7,140,000 shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding stock options, which will become eligible for
sale in the public market to the extent permitted by the provisions of various vesting schedules, the lock-up agreements and Rule
144 under the Securities Act. If the shares we may issue from time to time upon exercise of outstanding options are sold, or if
it is perceived that they will be sold, by the award recipients in the public market, the price of our common stock could decline.
You may experience dilution of your ownership
interests because of the future issuance of additional shares of our common or preferred stock or other securities that are convertible
into or exercisable for our common or preferred stock.
In the future, we may issue
our authorized but previously unissued equity securities, resulting in the dilution of the ownership interests of our stockholders.
We are authorized to issue an aggregate of 490,000,000 shares of common stock and 10,000,000 shares of “blank check”
preferred stock. We may issue additional shares of our common stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable
for our common stock in connection with hiring or retaining employees, future acquisitions, future sales of our securities for
capital raising purposes, or for other business purposes. The future issuance of any such additional shares of our common stock
may create downward pressure on the trading price of the common stock. We expect we will need to raise additional capital in the
near future to meet our working capital needs, and there can be no assurance that we will not be required to issue additional shares,
warrants or other convertible securities in the future in conjunction with these capital raising efforts, including at a price
(or exercise prices) below the price you paid for your stock.
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The ability of our Board of Directors to
issue additional stock may prevent or make more difficult certain transactions, including a sale or merger.
Our Board of Directors
is authorized to issue up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock with powers, rights and preferences designated by it. Shares
of voting or convertible preferred stock could be issued, or rights to purchase such shares could be issued, to create voting impediments
or to frustrate persons seeking to effect a takeover or otherwise gain control of us. The ability of the Board of Directors to
issue such additional shares of preferred stock, with rights and preferences it deems advisable, could discourage an attempt by
a party to acquire control of us by tender offer or other means. Such issuances could therefore deprive stockholders of benefits
that could result from such an attempt, such as the realization of a premium over the market price for their shares in a tender
offer or the temporary increase in market price that such an attempt could cause. Moreover, the issuance of such additional shares
of preferred stock to persons friendly to the Board of Directors could make it more difficult to remove incumbent managers and
directors from office even if such change were to be favorable to stockholders generally.
Our status as an emerging growth company
may result in reduced disclosure obligations.
We are an “emerging
growth company,” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, which we refer to as the JOBS Act, and we are eligible
to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting and financial disclosure requirements that are applicable to other
public companies, that are not emerging growth companies, including, but not limited to, (1) not being required to comply with
the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (2) reduced disclosure
obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and (3) exemptions from the requirements
of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not
previously approved. We intend to take advantage of these exemptions. Because of the reduced disclosure and because a portion of
our business is conducted in China, investors may find investing in our common stock less attractive as a result, which could have
an adverse effect on our stock price.
In addition, Section 102
of the JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in
Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, for complying with new or revised accounting standards. As a result,
an emerging growth company can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to
private companies. We elected to opt out of such extended transition period and acknowledge such election is irrevocable pursuant
to Section 107 of the JOBS Act.
We could remain an emerging
growth company for up to five years, or until the earliest of (1) the last day of the first fiscal year in which our annual gross
revenues exceed $1.07 billion, (2) the date that we become a “large accelerated filer” as defined in Rule 12b-2 under
the Exchange Act, which would occur if the market value of our ordinary shares that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million
as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter and we have been publicly reporting for at least
12 months, or (3) the date on which we have issued more than $1 billion in non-convertible debt during the preceding three-year
period.
We are a “smaller reporting company,”
and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies will make our common
stock less attractive to investors.
We are currently a “smaller reporting company”,
meaning that we are not an investment company, an asset- backed issuer, or a majority-owned subsidiary of a parent company that
is not a smaller reporting company and have a non-affiliated public float of less than $250.0 million and annual revenues of less
than $100.0 million during the most recently completed fiscal year and no public float or a public float less than $700 million.
“Smaller reporting companies” are able to provide simplified executive compensation disclosures in their filings; are
exempt from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring that independent registered public accounting
firms provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting; and have certain other decreased
disclosure obligations in their SEC filings, including, among other things, only being required to provide two years of audited
financial statements in annual reports. Decreased disclosures in our SEC filings due to our status as a “smaller reporting
company” may make it harder for investors to analyze our results of operations and financial prospects.
If securities or industry analysts do not
publish research or reports about our business, or if they issue an adverse or misleading opinion regarding our stock, our stock
price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for
our common stock will be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business.
We do not currently have and may never obtain research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If no or few securities or
industry analysts commence coverage of us, the trading price for our stock would be negatively impacted. In the event we obtain
securities or industry analyst coverage, if any of the analysts who cover us issue an adverse or misleading opinion regarding us,
our business model, our intellectual property or our stock performance, or if our operating results fail to meet the expectations
of analysts, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of us or fail to publish reports
on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume
to decline.
33
Our officers, directors and principal stockholders
own a significant percentage of our stock and will be able to exert significant control over matters subject to stockholder approval.
Our officers, directors
and 5% stockholders and their affiliates beneficially own a significant percentage of our outstanding common stock. As a result,
these stockholders have significant influence and may be able to determine all matters requiring stockholder approval. For example,
these stockholders may be able to control elections of directors, amendments of our organizational documents, or approval of any
merger, sale of assets, or other major corporate transactions. This concentration of ownership could delay or prevent any acquisition
of our company on terms that other stockholders may desire, and may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.
We may be exposed to additional risks as
a result of “going public” by means of a reverse acquisition transaction.
We may be exposed to additional
risks because we became a public company through a “reverse merger” transaction. There has been increased focus by
government agencies on reverse merger transactions in recent years, and we may be subject to increased scrutiny by the SEC and
other government agencies and holders of our securities as a result of the completion of our reverse merger transaction. Additionally,
our “going public” by means of a reverse merger transaction may make it more difficult for us to obtain coverage from
securities analysts of major brokerage firms following the reverse merger transaction because there may be little incentive to
those brokerage firms to recommend the purchase of our common stock. Further, investment banks may be less likely to agree to underwrite
secondary offerings on our behalf than they might if we became a public reporting company by means of an initial public offering
because they may be less familiar with our company as a result of more limited coverage by analysts and the media, and because
we became public at an early stage in our development. The failure to receive research coverage or support in the market for our
shares will have an adverse effect on our ability to develop a liquid market for our common stock. The occurrence of any such event
could cause our business or stock price to suffer.
We do not anticipate paying dividends on
our common stock, and investors may lose the entire amount of their investment.
We have never declared
or paid cash dividends on our common stock, and we do not anticipate such a declaration or payment for the foreseeable future.
We expect to use future
earnings, if any, to fund business growth. Therefore, stockholders will not receive any funds absent a sale of their shares of
common stock. We cannot assure stockholders of a positive return on their investment when they sell their shares, nor can we assure
that stockholders will not lose the entire amount of their investment.
Applicable regulatory requirements, including
those contained in and issued under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, may make it difficult for us to retain or attract qualified
officers and directors, which could adversely affect the management of our business and our ability to obtain or retain listing
of our common stock on a national securities exchange.
We may be unable to attract
and retain those qualified officers, directors and members of board committees required to provide for effective management because
of the rules and regulations that govern publicly held companies, including, but not limited to, certifications by principal executive
officers. The enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has resulted in the issuance of a series of related rules and regulations and
the strengthening of existing rules and regulations by the SEC, as well as the adoption of new and more stringent rules by national
securities exchanges. The perceived increased personal risk associated with these changes may deter qualified individuals from
accepting roles as directors and executive officers.
Further, some of these
changes heighten the requirements for board or committee membership, particularly with respect to an individual’s independence
from the corporation and level of experience in finance and accounting matters. We may have difficulty attracting and retaining
directors with the requisite qualifications. If we are unable to attract and retain qualified officers and directors, the management
of our business and our ability to obtain or retain listing of our shares of common stock on any national securities exchange could
be adversely affected.
If we cannot satisfy, or continue to satisfy,
the initial listing requirements and other rules of the Nasdaq Capital Market, our securities may be delisted, which could negatively
impact the price of our securities and your ability to sell them.
Our common stock has been
listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “AVCO” since November 5, 2018. In order to maintain our listing
on the Nasdaq Capital Market, we are required to comply with certain rules of the applicable trading market, including those regarding
minimum stockholders’ equity, minimum share price and certain corporate governance requirements. We may not be able to continue
to satisfy the listing requirements and other applicable rules of the Nasdaq Capital Market. If we are unable to satisfy the criteria
for maintaining our listing, our securities could be subject to delisting.
If our common stock is
delisted from trading by the applicable trading market we could face significant consequences, including.
●
a limited availability for market quotations for our securities;
●
reduced liquidity with respect to our securities;
●
a determination that our common stock is a “penny stock,” which will require brokers trading in our common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our common stock;
●
limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and
●
a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future.
34
We could be subject to securities class
action litigation.
In the past, securities
class action litigation has often been brought against a company following a decline in the market price of its securities. This
risk is especially relevant for us because companies in our industry have experienced significant stock price volatility in recent
years. If we face such litigation, it could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s attention and resources,
which could harm our business.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Our principal offices are
located at 4400 Route 9 South, Freehold, NJ 07728. The office building is owned by our subsidiary, Avalon RT 9 Properties, LLC,
which is in business of owning and operating an income-producing real property. Our property is well maintained, adequately meets
our needs, and is being utilized for its intended purpose.
We lease additional office
space for operations. Office location is not crucial to our operations, and we anticipate no difficulty in extending these leases
or obtaining comparable office space.
We are obligated under
various lease agreements providing for office space that expire at various dates through the year 2022. Total rent expense under
these lease agreements was approximately $164,000 and $91,000 for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
We believe that our current
office space is adequate for our current and immediately foreseeable operating needs.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
From time to time, we are
subject to ordinary routine litigation incidental to our normal business operations. We are not currently a party to, and our property
is not subject to, any material legal proceedings, except as set forth below.
On October 25, 2017, Genexosome
entered into and closed a Stock Purchase Agreement with Beijing Genexosome and Yu Zhou, MD, PhD, the sole shareholder of Beijing
Genexosome, pursuant to which Genexosome acquired all of the issued and outstanding securities of Beijing Genexosome in consideration
of a cash payment in the amount of $450,000 of which $100,000 is still owed. Further, on October 25, 2017, Genexosome entered into
and closed an Asset Purchase Agreement with Dr. Zhou, pursuant to which the Company acquired all assets, including all intellectual
property and the exosome separation system, held by Dr. Zhou pertaining to the business of researching, developing and commercializing
exosome technologies. In consideration of the assets, Genexosome paid Dr. Zhou $876,087 in cash, transferred 500,000 shares of
common stock of the Company to Dr. Zhou and issued Dr. Zhou 400 shares of common stock of Genexosome. Further, The Company
had not been able to realize the financial projections provided by Dr. Zhou for the sale of the separation systems which were provided
to the Company at the time of the acquisition and the Company has decided to impair the intangible asset associated with this acquisition
to zero. Dr. Zhou was terminated as Co-CEO of Genexosome on August 14, 2019. Further, on October 28, 2019, Research
Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital (“Research Institute”) filed a Complaint in the United States District
Court for the Southern District of Ohio Eastern Division against Dr. Zhou, Li Chen, the Company and Genexosome with various claims
against the Company and Genexosome including misappropriation of trade secrets in violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act of
2016 and violation of Ohio Uniform Trade Secrets Act. Research Institute is seeking monetary damages, injunctive relief,
exemplary damages, injunctive relief and other equitable relief. The case number is 2:19-cv-4574. The Company intends to vigorously
defend against this action and pursue all available legal remedies. While there can be no assurances, the Company believes it
has substantial legal and factual defenses to the Research Institute’s claims.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
None.
35
PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
Market Information
Our common stock has been listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market
under the symbol “AVCO” since November 5, 2018. Our common shares were traded previously on the OTC Market Group Inc.’s
Venture Market (the “OTCQB”) since February 22, 2016, under the symbol “AVCO” since October 18, 2016 and
“GTHC” prior to October 18, 2016.
The following table sets forth, for each of the calendar periods
indicated, the quarterly high and low bid prices for our common stock quoted on the Nasdaq Capital Market. The prices in the table
represent prices between dealers and do not include adjustments for retail mark-up, markdown or commission and may not represent
actual transactions.
High
Low
2019
First Quarter
$ 12.55
$ 2.60
Second Quarter
$ 5.63
$ 1.91
Third Quarter
$ 2.59
$ 1.73
Fourth Quarter
$ 2.32
$ 1.44
2020
First Quarter
$ 2.04
$ 0.50
Second Quarter
$ 2.19
$ 1.05
Third Quarter
$ 2.16
$ 1.10
Fourth Quarter
$ 1.33
$ 1.06
On March 29, 2021,
the closing trading price of our shares of common stock was $1.10 per share and there were 84,405,614 common shares outstanding.
On that date, there were approximately 225 registered holders of record of our shares of common stock, based upon information received
from our stock transfer agent. However, this number does not include beneficial owners whose shares were held of record by nominees
or broker dealers.
Dividends
The Company has never declared or paid any cash dividends on
its common stock. The Company currently intends to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the expansion of its business. As
a result, the Company does not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
The
Company held its annual meeting on August 4, 2020. During its annual meeting, the Company approved 2020 Incentive Stock Plan and
reserved 5,000,000 shares of common stock for issuance thereunder.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
Common Shares Issued for Services
During the year ended December 31, 2020, the Company issued
a total of 1,505,921 shares of its common stock for services rendered and to be rendered. These shares were valued at $1,892,520,
the fair market values on the grant dates using the reported closing share prices on the dates of grant and the Company recorded
stock-based compensation expense of $1,670,166 for the year ended December 31, 2020 and reduced accrued liabilities of $187,725
and recorded prepaid expense of $34,629 as of December 31, 2020 which will be amortized over the rest of corresponding service
periods.
In January 2021, the Company issued a total of 300,000 shares of its common stock
for services rendered. These shares were valued at $360,000, the fair market values on the grant dates using the reported closing
share prices on the dates of grant and the Company reduced accrued liabilities of $360,000.
The offers, sales, and issuances of the securities described
above were deemed to be exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933 in reliance on Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities
Act of 1933 or Regulation D promulgated thereunder as transactions by an issuer not involving a public offering. The recipients
of securities in each of these transactions acquired the securities for investment only and not with a view to or for sale in
connection with any distribution thereof and appropriate legends were affixed to the securities issued in these transactions.
Each of the recipients of securities in these transactions was an accredited or sophisticated person and had adequate access,
through employment, business or other relationships, to information about us.
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
As the Company is a Smaller Reporting Company (as defined by
Rule 229.10(f)(1)), the Company is not required to provide the information under this item.
36
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of
operations for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements
and related notes to those consolidated financial statements that are included elsewhere in this report. Certain information
contained in the discussion and analysis set forth below includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.
Special Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements
All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Form 10-K
including, without limitation, statements under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results
of Operations” regarding our financial position, business strategy and the plans and objectives of management for future
operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this Form 10-K, words such as “anticipate,” “believe,”
“estimate,” “expect,” “intend” and similar expressions, as they relate to us or our management,
identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions
made by, and information currently available to, our management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated
by the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those set forth under the risk factors and business
sections in this Form 10-K.
Impact of COVID-19 on our Operations, Financial Condition,
Liquidity and Results of Operations
The ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations is unknown and will
depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the duration of the
COVID-19 outbreak, new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and any additional preventative
and protective actions that governments, or us, may determine are needed.
The occurrence of COVID-19 pandemic
had negativeimpact on our operations. Some tenants have delayed on rent payment and some of the universities and laboratories with which
we collaborate were temporarily closed. Our general development operations have continued during the COVID-19 pandemic and we have not
had significant disruption. However, we are uncertain if the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future operations at our laboratory, or our
ability to collaborate with other laboratories and universities. In addition, we are unsure if the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future
clinical trials. Given the dynamic nature of these circumstances, the duration of business disruption and reduced traffic, the related
financial effect cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is expected to adversely impact the Company’s business for the
year of 2021.
We have limited cash available to fund planned operations and although we have other
sources of capital described below under “Liquidity and Capital Resources,” management continues to pursue various
financing alternatives to fund our operations so we can continue as a going concern. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has created
significant economic uncertainty and volatility in the credit and capital markets. Management plans to secure the necessary financing
through the issue of new equity and/or the entering into of strategic partnership arrangements but the ultimate impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on our ability to raise additional capital is unknown and will depend on future developments, which are highly
uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the duration of the COVID-19 outbreak and new information which may
emerge concerning the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic. We may not be able to raise sufficient additional capital and may tailor
our operations based on the amount of funding we are able to raise in the future. Nevertheless, there is no assurance that these
initiatives will be successful. Further, there is no assurance that capital available to us in any future financing will be on
acceptable terms.
Overview
The Company is a clinical-stage, vertically
integrated, leading CellTech bio-developer dedicated to advancing and empowering innovative, transformative immune effector cell
therapy, exosome technology, as well as COVID-19 related diagnostics and therapeutics. The Company also provides strategic advisory
and outsourcing services to facilitate and enhance its clients’ growth and development, as well as competitiveness in healthcare
and CellTech industry markets. Through its subsidiary structure with u nique integration of verticals
from innovative R&D to automated bioproduction and accelerated clinical development, the Company is establishing a leading
role in the fields of cellular immunotherapy (including CAR-T/NK), exosome technology (ACTEX™), and COVID-19 related vaccine
and therapeutics .
Avalon achieves and fosters seamless integration of unique verticals to bridge and
accelerate innovative research, bio-process development, clinical programs and product commercialization. Avalon’s upstream
innovative research includes:
● Development
of Avalon Clinical-grade Tissue-specific Exosome (“ACTEX™”)
● Novel
therapeutic and diagnostic targets development utilizing QTY-code protein design technology
with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) including using the QTY code protein
design technology for development of a hemofiltration device to treat Cytokine Storm.
● Co-development
of next generation, transposon-based, multi-target CAR-T, CAR-NK and other immune effector
cell therapeutic modalities with Arbele Limited.
37
● Strategic
partnership with the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) in Vienna,
Austria to develop an S-layer vaccine that can be administered by an intranasal or oral
route against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 disease.
Avalon’s midstream bio-processing and bio-production facility is located in
Nanjing, China with state-of-the-art, automated GMP and QC/QA infrastructure for standardized bio-manufacturing of clinical-grade
cellular products involved in our clinical programs in immune effector cell therapy, regenerative therapeutics, as well as bio-banking.
Avalon’s downstream medical team and facility consists of top-rated affiliated
hospital network and experts specialized in hematology, oncology, cellular immunotherapy, hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell transplant,
as well as regenerative therapeutics. Our major clinical programs include:
● AVA-001: Avalon has initiated its first-in-human
clinical trial of CD19 CAR-T candidate, AVA-001 in August 2019 at the Hebei Yanda Lu Daopei Hospital and Beijing Lu Daopei
Hospital in China (the world’s single largest CAR-T treatment network with over 600 patients being treated with CAR-T)
for the indication of relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. The AVA-001 candidate
(co-developed with China Immunotech Co. Ltd) is characterized by the utilization of 4-1BB (CD137) co-stimulatory signaling
pathway, conferring a strong anti-cancer activity during pre-clinical study. It also features a shorter bio-manufacturing
time which leads to the advantage of prompt treatment to patients where timing is important related hematologic malignancies.
Avalon has successfully completed the first-in-human clinical trial of its AVA-001 anti-CD19 CAR-T cell therapy as a bridge
to allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Lu
Daopei Hospital (registered clinical trial number NCT03952923) with excellent efficacy (90% complete remission rate) and minimal
adverse side effects. Avalon is currently expanding the patient recruitment for AVA-001
to include relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients.
● ACTEX™:
Stem cell-derived Avalon Clinical-grade Tissue-specific Exosomes (ACTEX™) is one
of the core technology platforms that has been co-developed by Avalon GloboCare and Weill
Cornell Medicine. The Company formed a strategic partnership with HydroPeptide, LLC,
a leading epigenetics skin care company, to engage in co-development and commercialization
of a series of clinical-grade, exosome-based cosmeceutical and orthopedic products. As
part of this agreement, the Company signed a three-way Material Transfer Agreement between
Avalon GloboCare, HydroPeptide and Weill Cornell Medicine.
● FLASH-CAR™:
The Company advanced its next generation immune cell therapy using RNA-based, non-viral FLASH-CAR™ technology
co-developed with the Company’s strategic partner Arbele Limited. The adaptable
FLASH-CAR™ platform can be used to create personalized cell therapy from a patient’s
own cells, as well as off-the-shelf cell therapy from a universal donor. Our leading candidate, AVA-011, is currently at process development
stage to generate clinical-grade cell-therapy products for subsequent clinical studies.
● AVA-Trap™:
Avalon’s AVA-Trap™ therapeutic program plans to enter animal model testing
followed by expedited clinical studies with the goal of providing an effective therapeutic
option to combat COVID-19 and other life-threatening conditions involving cytokine storms.
The Company initiated a sponsored research and co-development project with Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) led by Professor Shuguang Zhang as Principal Investigator
in May 2019. Using the unique QTY code protein design platform, six water-soluble variant
cytokine receptors have been successfully designed and tested to show binding affinity
to the respective cytokines.
We generated revenue by providing medical related consulting services in advanced
areas of immunotherapy and second opinion/referral services through our wholly-owned subsidiary Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology
Co., Ltd., or Avalon Shanghai. We also own and operate rental commercial real property in New Jersey, where we are headquartered.
The value of the Renminbi (“RMB”), the main currency used in China,
fluctuates and is affected by, among other things, changes in China’s political and economic conditions. The conversion
of RMB into foreign currencies such as the U.S. dollar have generally been based on rates set by the People’s Bank of China,
which are set daily based on the previous day’s interbank foreign exchange market rates and current exchange rates on the
world financial markets.
Going Concern
The Company is a clinical-stage,
vertically integrated, leading CellTech bio-developer dedicated to advancing and empowering innovative, transformative immune
effector cell therapy, exosome technology, as well as COVID-19 related diagnostics and therapeutics. The Company also provides
strategic advisory and outsourcing services to facilitate and enhance its clients’ growth and development, as well as competitiveness
in healthcare and CellTech industry markets. Through its subsidiary structure with unique integration of verticals from innovative
R&D to automated bioproduction and accelerated clinical development, the Company is establishing a leading role in the fields
of cellular immunotherapy (including CAR-T/NK), exosome technology (ACTEX™), and regenerative therapeutics.
38
In addition, the Company owns commercial real estate that houses its headquarters
in Freehold, New Jersey and provides outsourced, customized international healthcare services
to the rapidly changing health care industry primarily focused in the People’s Republic of China. The Company did
not generate any revenue from development services and sales of developed products segment during the year ended December 31,
2020. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern, which
contemplates, among other things, the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business.
As reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements, the Company
had an accumulated deficit of $42,041,375 at December 31, 2020, and has incurred recurring net loss and generated negative cash
flow from operating activities of $12,679,438 and $7,546,100 for the year ended December 31, 2020, respectively. The Company has
a limited operating history and its continued growth is dependent upon the continuation of providing medical consulting services
to its only few clients who are related parties and generating rental revenue from its income-producing real estate property in
New Jersey and performing development services for hospitals and other customers and sales of developed products to hospitals
and other customers; hence generating revenues, and obtaining additional financing to fund future obligations and pay liabilities
arising from normal business operations. In addition, the current cash balance cannot be projected to cover the operating expenses
for the next twelve months from the release date of this report. These matters raise substantial doubt about the Company’s
ability to continue as a going concern. The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent on the Company’s
ability to raise additional capital, implement its business plan, and generate significant revenues. There are no assurances that
the Company will be successful in its efforts to generate significant revenues, maintain sufficient cash balance or report profitable
operations or to continue as a going concern. The Company plans on raising capital through the sale of equity to implement its
business plan. However, there is no assurance these plans will be realized and that any additional financings will be available
to the Company on satisfactory terms and conditions, if any.
The occurrence of an uncontrollable event such as the COVID-19 pandemic had negatively
impact on the Company’s operations. Some tenants have delayed on rent payment and our occupancy of our rental property has
decreased. Our general development operations have continued during the COVID-19 pandemic and we have not had significant disruption.
However, we are uncertain if the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future operations at our laboratory, or our ability to collaborate
with other laboratories and universities. In addition, we are unsure if the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future clinical trials.
Given the dynamic nature of these circumstances, the duration of business disruption and reduced traffic, the related financial
effect cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is expected to adversely impact the Company’s business for the year
of 2021.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments
related to the recoverability or classification of asset-carrying amounts or the amounts and classification of liabilities that
may result should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.
Critical Accounting
Policies
Use of Estimates
Our discussion
and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our consolidated financial statements, which
have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these
consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets,
liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. We continually evaluate our
estimates, including those related to the useful life of property and equipment and investment in real estate, assumptions
used in assessing impairment of long-term assets, valuation of deferred tax assets and the associated valuation allowances,
and valuation of stock-based compensation.
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions
that we believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the
carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Any future changes to these estimates
and assumptions could cause a material change to our reported amounts of revenues, expenses, assets and liabilities. Actual results
may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
Revenue Recognition
We recognize revenue under
Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”).
The core principle of the revenue standard is that a company should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods
or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the company expects to be entitled in exchange for
those goods or services. The following five steps are applied to achieve that core principle:
● Step
1: Identify the contract with the customer
● Step
2: Identify the performance obligations in the contract
● Step
3: Determine the transaction price
● Step
4: Allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract
● Step
5: Recognize revenue when the company satisfies a performance obligation
39
In order to identify the performance obligations in a contract
with a customer, a company must assess the promised goods or services in the contract and identify each promised goods or service
that is distinct. A performance obligation meets ASC 606’s definition of a “distinct” goods or service (or bundle
of goods or services) if both of the following criteria are met:
● The
customer can benefit from the goods or service either on its own or together with other
resources that are readily available to the customer (i.e., the goods or service is capable
of being distinct).
● The
entity’s promise to transfer the goods or service to the customer is separately
identifiable from other promises in the contract (i.e., the promise to transfer the goods
or service is distinct within the context of the contract).
If a goods or service is not distinct, the goods or service is combined with other
promised goods or services until a bundle of goods or services is identified that is distinct.
The transaction price is the amount of consideration to which an entity expects
to be entitled in exchange for transferring promised goods or services to a customer, excluding amounts collected on behalf of
third parties (for example, some sales taxes). The consideration promised in a contract with a customer may include fixed amounts,
variable amounts, or both. Variable consideration is included in the transaction price only to the extent that it is probable
that a significant reversal in the amount of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur when the uncertainty associated with
the variable consideration is subsequently resolved.
The transaction price is allocated to each performance obligation on a relative
standalone selling price basis. The transaction price allocated to each performance obligation is recognized when that performance
obligation is satisfied, at a point in time or over time as appropriate.
Types of revenue:
● Service
fees under consulting agreements with related parties
to provide medical related consulting services to its clients. The Company is paid
for its services by its clients pursuant to the terms of the written consulting agreements.
Each contract calls for a fixed payment.
● Service
fees under agreements to perform development services
for hospitals and other customers. The Company does not perform contracts that are contingent
upon successful results .
● Sales
of developed products to hospitals and other customers .
Revenue recognition criteria:
● The
Company recognizes revenue by providing medical related consulting services under written
service contracts with its customers. Revenue related to its service offerings is recognized
as the services are performed.
● Revenue
from development services performed under written
contracts is recognized as services are provided .
● Revenue
from sales of developed items to hospitals and
other customers is recognized when items are shipped to customers and titles are transferred .
We have determined that the ASC 606 does not apply to rental contracts, which are
within the scope of other revenue recognition accounting standards.
Rental income from operating leases is recognized on a straight-line basis under
the guidance of ASC 842. Lease payments under tenant leases are recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the related
leases. The cumulative difference between lease revenue recognized under the straight-line method and contractual lease payments
are included in rent receivable on the consolidated balance sheets.
We do not offer promotional payments, customer coupons, rebates or other cash redemption
offers to our customers.
Income Taxes
We are governed by the income tax
laws of China and the United States. Income taxes are accounted for pursuant to ASC 740 “Accounting for Income
Taxes,” which is an asset and liability approach that requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities
for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in our financial statements or tax returns. The
charge for taxes is based on the results for the period as adjusted for items, which are non-assessable or disallowed. It is
calculated using tax rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date.
40
Deferred tax is accounted for using the balance sheet liability method in respect
of temporary differences arising from differences between the carrying amount of assets and liabilities in the financial statements
and the corresponding tax basis used in the computation of assessable tax profit. In principle, deferred tax liabilities are recognized
for all taxable temporary differences, and deferred tax assets are recognized to the extent that it is probably that taxable profit
will be available against which deductible temporary differences can be utilized.
Deferred tax is calculated using tax rates that are expected to apply to the period
when the asset is realized or the liability is settled. Deferred tax is charged or credited in the income statement, except when
it is related to items credited or charged directly to equity, in which case the deferred tax is changed to equity. Deferred tax
assets and liabilities are offset when they related to income taxes levied by the same taxation authority and we intend to settle
its current tax assets and liabilities on a net basis.
Recent Accounting Standards
For details of applicable new accounting standards, please, refer to Recent
Accounting Standards in Note 3 of our consolidated financial statements accompanying this report.
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Comparison of Results of Operations for the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and
2019
Revenues
For the year ended December 31, 2020, we had real property rental
revenue of $1,206,854, as compared to $1,155,677 for the year ended December 31, 2019, an increase of $51,177, or 4.4%. The increase
was primarily attributable to the increase of tenants in 2020. We expect that our revenue from real property rent will increase
in the near future since our occupancy of our rental property increased in subsequent period.
For the year ended December 31, 2020, we had medical related consulting services
revenue from related parties of $170,908, as compared to $355,544 for the year ended December 31, 2019, a decrease of $184,636,
or 51.9%. The decrease was mainly attributable to the decreased demand for our consulting service from our related parties. We
expect that our revenue from medical related consulting services will increase in the near future.
For the year ended December 31,
2020, we did not have any revenue from contract services through performing development services for hospitals and other customers and
sales of developed products to hospitals and other customers. For the year ended December 31, 2019, we had revenue from contract services
through performing development services for hospitals and other customers and sales of developed products to hospitals and other customers
of $35,084. We have discontinued sales of our exosome isolation system product. However, we are actively developing other unrelated proprietary
exosome related products for sale or licensure.
Costs and Expenses
Real property operating expenses consist of property management fees, property insurance,
real estate taxes, depreciation, repairs and maintenance fees, utilities and other expenses related to our rental properties.
For the year ended December 31, 2020, our real property operating
expenses amounted to $851,754, as compared to $818,662 for the year ended December 31, 2019, an increase of $33,092, or 4.0%. The
increase was mainly due to an increase in property management fees of approximately $11,000, and an increase in other miscellaneous
items of approximately $22,000.
Costs of medical related consulting services include the cost of labor and related
benefits, travel expenses related to medical related consulting services, other related consulting costs, and other overhead costs.
For the year ended December 31, 2020, costs of medical related consulting services
amounted to $135,805, as compared to $284,472 for the year ended December 31, 2019, a decrease of $148,667, or 52.3%. The decrease
was mainly due to the decrease in medical related consulting services revenue.
Costs of development services and sales of developed products include inventory
costs, materials and supplies costs, labor and related benefits, depreciation, other overhead costs and shipping and handling
costs incurred.
For the year ended December 31, 2019, costs of development services for hospitals
and other customers and sales of developed products to hospitals and other customers amounted to $103,258. We had neither revenue
nor cost of revenue from this segment in the year ended December 31, 2020.
41
Real Property Operating Income
Our real property
operating income for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $355,100, representing an increase of $18,085, or 5.4%, as compared
to $337,015 for the year ended December 31, 2019. The increase was mainly attributable to the increase in rental revenue
resulting from the increase of tenants as described above, offset by the increase in real property operating expenses. We
expect our real property operating income will increase in the near future since our occupancy rate increased in subsequent
period.
Gross Profit from Medical Related Consulting Services
and Gross Margin
Gross profit from medical related consulting services for the year ended December
31, 2020 was $35,103, as compared to $71,072 for the year ended December 31, 2019, a change of $35,969, or 50.6%.
Gross margin increased to 20.5% for the year ended December 31, 2020 from gross
margin of 20.0% for the year ended December 31, 2019. We estimate that our gross margin from medical related consulting services
segment will remain at its current yearly level.
Gross Loss from Development Services and Sales of
Developed Products and Gross Margin
We did not generate any gross profit from development services and sales of developed
products in the year ended December 31, 2020. Our gross loss from development services and sales of developed products for the
year ended December 31, 2019 was $68,174, with a gross margin of (194.3)%.
Other Operating Expenses
For the years ended
December 31, 2020 and 2019, other operating expenses consisted of the following:
Years Ended December 31,
2020
2019
Professional fees
$ 6,553,009
$ 5,994,129
Compensation and related benefits
4,156,150
8,743,691
Research and development
883,855
1,781,869
Advertising expenses
294,352
685,064
Amortization
-
245,678
Travel and entertainment
175,300
522,805
Directors and officers liability insurance premium
276,028
184,423
Rent and related utilities
92,370
91,033
Other general and administrative
413,158
458,440
Impairment loss
-
1,010,011
$ 12,844,222
$ 19,717,143
● Professional
fees primarily consisted of accounting fees, audit fees, legal service fees, consulting
fees, investor relations service charges and other fees incurred for service related
to being a public company. For the year ended December 31, 2020, professional fees increased
by $558,880, or 9.3%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. The increase was
primarily attributable to an increase in consulting fees of approximately $989,000 mainly
due to the increase in stock-based consulting fees resulting from the increase in use
of consulting service providers, an increase in accounting service charges of approximately
$103,000 as a result of the increase in stock-based accounting fees and an increase in
other miscellaneous items of approximately $49,000, offset by a decrease in legal service
fees of approximately $582,000 as a result of decrease in use of legal service providers.
We expect that our professional fees will remain in its current yearly level with minimal
increase in the near future.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, compensation and related benefits decreased by $4,587,541,
or 52.5%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. The significant decrease was
primarily attributable to a decrease in stock-based compensation of approximately $4,133,000
which reflected the value of options granted and vested to our management, and a decrease
in bonus for our three key officers of approximately $354,000, and a decrease in compensation
and related benefits for other employees and directors of approximately $101,000, mainly
due to the termination of employment in August 2019. We expect that our compensation
and related benefits will remain in its current yearly level with minimal increase in
the near future.
42
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, research and development expenses
decreased by $898,014, or 50.4%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. Our first project with Arbele was completed in
January 2020 and no further research and development project was incurred in 2020. Our research and development contract with Weill
Cornell Medicine expired as of November 2019. Therefore, our research and development expenses decreased. We expect our research
and development expenses will increase in the near future.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, advertising expenses decreased by $390,712 or 57.0%
as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. The decrease was primarily due to decreased
advertising activities incurred as a result of stricter control on corporation spending.
We expect that our advertising expenses will continue to decrease in the near future.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, amortization expense from intangible assets decreased
by $245,678, or 100.0%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. At the end of
September 2019, our intangible assets were impaired to zero and therefore, no amortization
expense was recorded related to intangible assets in the year ended December 31, 2020.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, travel and entertainment expense decreased by $347,505,
or 66.5%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. The decrease was mainly due
to decreased business travel activities and decreased entertainment expenditure resulting
from COVID-19. In the year ended December 31, 2020, the spread of COVID-19 has caused
public health officials to recommend precautions to mitigate the spread of the virus,
such as, cease traveling to non-essential jobs and curtail all unnecessary travel, and
stay at home as much as possible.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, Directors and Officers Liability
Insurance premium increased by $91,605, or 49.7%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019. The increase was mainly due
to different insurance provider with different premium.
● For
the year ended December 31, 2020, rent and related utilities expenses increased by $1,337,
or 1.5%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019.
● Other
general and administrative expenses mainly consisted of NASDAQ listing fee, academic
sponsorship, and other miscellaneous items. For the year ended December 31, 2020, other
general and administrative expenses decreased by $45,282, or 9.9%, as compared to the
year ended December 31, 2019, which was mainly due to a decrease in academic sponsorship
expenditure of approximately $95,000, offset by an increase in other miscellaneous items
of approximately $50,000.
● In
September 2019, we assessed our intangible assets for any impairment and concluded that
there were indicators of impairment as of September 30, 2019 and we calculated that
the estimated undiscounted cash flows were less than the carrying amount of those intangible
assets. We have not been able to realize the financial projections provided by Dr. Zhou
at the time of the intangible assets purchase and have decided to impair the intangible
assets to zero. Based on our analysis, we recognized an impairment loss of $1,010,011
for the year ended December 31, 2019, which reduced the value of intangible assets purchased
to zero. We did not record any impairment charge for the year ended December 31, 2020.
Loss from Operations
As a result of the foregoing, for the year
ended December 31, 2020, loss from operations amounted to $12,454,019, as compared to $19,377,230 for the year ended December
31, 2019, a decrease of $6,923,211, or 35.7%.
Other Income (Expense)
Other income (expense) mainly includes interest expense, change
in fair value of warrants liabilities, allocated financing costs, loss from equity method investment, and loss from noncontrolling
interest deficit adjustment .
Other expense, net, totaled $225,419 for the year ended December 31, 2020, as compared
to other income, net, of $1,307,069 for the year ended December 31, 2019, a decrease of $1,532,488, or 117.2%, which was primarily
attributable to a decrease in change in fair value of warrants liabilities of approximately $2,817,000, an increase in interest
expense of approximately $86,000, a decrease in other income of approximately $21,000, offset by a decrease in allocated financing
expense of approximately $525,000, a decrease in loss from noncontrolling interest deficit adjustment of approximately $862,000,
and a decrease in loss from equity method investment of approximately $4,000.
Income Taxes
We did not have any income taxes expense for the years ended December 31, 2020 and
2019 since we incurred losses in these periods.
43
Net Loss
As a result of the factors described above, our net loss was $12,679,438 for the
year ended December 31, 2020, as compared to $18,070,161 for the year ended December 31, 2019, a decrease of $5,390,723 or 29.8%.
Net Loss Attributable to Avalon GloboCare Corp. Common
Shareholders
The net loss attributable to Avalon GloboCare Corp. common shareholders was $12,679,438
or $(0.16) per share (basic and diluted) for the year ended December 31, 2020, as compared with $18,070,161, or $(0.24) per share
(basic and diluted) for the year ended December 31, 2019, a change of $5,390,723 or 29.8%.
Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment
Our reporting currency is the U.S. dollar. The functional currency of our parent
company, AHS, Avalon RT 9, Genexosome, Avactis, and Exosome, is the U.S. dollar and the functional currency of Avalon Shanghai
and Beijing Genexosome, is the Chinese Renminbi (“RMB”). The financial statements of our subsidiaries whose functional
currency is the RMB are translated to U.S. dollars using period end rates of exchange for assets and liabilities, average rate
of exchange for revenues, costs, and expenses and cash flows, and at historical exchange rates for equity. Net gains and losses
resulting from foreign exchange transactions are included in the results of operations. As a result of foreign currency translations,
which are a non-cash adjustment, we reported a foreign currency translation gain of $67,237 and a foreign currency translation
loss of $20,887 for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. This non-cash gain/loss had the effect of decreasing/increasing
our reported comprehensive loss.
Comprehensive Loss
As a result of our foreign currency translation adjustment, we had comprehensive
loss of $12,612,201 and $18,091,048 for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
The Company has a limited operating history and its continued growth is dependent
upon the providing medical consulting services to its only few clients who are related parties and generating rental revenue from
its income-producing real estate property in New Jersey and performing development services for hospitals and other customers
and sales of developed products to hospitals and other customers; hence generating revenues, and obtaining additional financing
to fund future obligations and pay liabilities arising from normal business operations. In addition, the current cash balance
cannot be projected to cover the operating expenses for the next twelve months from the release date of this report. These matters
raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The ability of the Company to continue
as a going concern is dependent on the Company’s ability to raise additional capital, implement its business plan, and generate
significant revenues. There are no assurances that the Company will be successful in its efforts to generate significant revenues,
maintain sufficient cash balance or report profitable operations or to continue as a going concern. The Company plans on raising
capital through the sale of equity to implement its business plan. However, there is no assurance these plans will be realized
and that any additional financings will be available to the Company on satisfactory terms and conditions, if any.
The occurrence of an uncontrollable event such as the COVID-19 pandemic is likely
to negatively affect the Company’s operations. Efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus have intensified,
including social distancing, travel bans and quarantine, and these are likely to negatively impact our tenants, employees and
consultants. These, in turn, will not only impact our operations, financial condition and demand for our medical related consulting
services but our overall ability to react timely to mitigate the impact of this event. Given the dynamic nature of these circumstances,
the duration of business disruption and reduced traffic, the related financial effect cannot be reasonably estimated at this time
but is expected to adversely impact our business for the year of 2021.
Liquidity is the ability of a company to generate funds to support its current and
future operations, satisfy its obligations and otherwise operate on an ongoing basis. At December 31, 2020 and 2019, we had
cash balance of approximately $727,000 and $765,000, respectively. These funds are kept in financial institutions located as follows:
Country:
December 31,
2020
December 31,
2019
United States
$ 559,711
77.0 %
$ 371,929
48.6 %
China
166,866
23.0 %
392,962
51.4 %
Total cash
$ 726,577
100.0 %
$ 764,891
100.0 %
Under applicable PRC regulations, foreign invested enterprises, or FIEs, in China
may pay dividends only out of their accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations.
In addition, a foreign invested enterprise in China is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profit based on PRC
accounting standards each year to its general reserves until the cumulative amount of such reserves reach 50% of its registered
capital. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends.
44
In addition, a portion of our businesses and assets are denominated in RMB, which
is not freely convertible into foreign currencies. All foreign exchange transactions take place either through the People’s
Bank of China or other banks authorized to buy and sell foreign currencies at the exchange rates quoted by the People’s
Bank of China. Approval of foreign currency payments by the People’s Bank of China or other regulatory institutions requires
submitting a payment application form together with suppliers’ invoices, shipping documents and signed contracts. These
currency exchange control procedures imposed by the PRC government authorities may restrict the ability of our PRC subsidiary
to transfer its net assets to the Parent Company through loans, advances or cash dividends.
The current PRC Enterprise Income Tax (“EIT”) Law and its implementing
rules generally provide that a 10% withholding tax applies to China-sourced income derived by non-resident enterprises for PRC
enterprise income tax purposes unless the jurisdiction of incorporation of such enterprises’ shareholder has a tax treaty
with China that provides for a different withholding arrangement.
The following table sets forth a summary of changes in our working capital from
December 31, 2019 to December 31, 2020:
December 31,
Changes in
2020
2019
Amount
Percentage
Working capital deficit:
Total current assets
$ 1,286,337
$ 1,571,095
$ (284,758 )
(18.1 )%
Total current liabilities
2,592,393
2,835,463
(243,070 )
(8.6 )%
Working capital deficit
$ (1,306,056 )
$ (1,264,368 )
$ (41,688 )
3.3 %
Our working
capital deficit increased by $41,688 to $1,306,056 at December 31, 2020 from $1,264,368 at December 31, 2019. The
increase in working capital deficit was primarily attributable to a decrease in accounts receivable – related party of
approximately $215,000, a decrease in deferred financing costs of approximately $89,000, an increase in accrued liabilities
and other payables of approximately $89,000, an increase in accrued liabilities and other payables of approximately $71,000,
an increase in accrued liabilities and other payables – related parties of approximately $119,000, and an increase in
operating lease obligation of approximately $76,000, offset by an increase in prepaid expenses and other current assets of
approximately $51,000, a decrease in accrued research and development fees of approximately $136,000, and a decrease in
accrued payroll liability and directors’ compensation of approximately $334,000.
Because the exchange rate conversion is different for the consolidated balance sheets
and the consolidated statements of cash flows, the changes in assets and liabilities reflected on the consolidated statements
of cash flows are not necessarily identical with the comparable changes reflected on the consolidated balance sheets.
Cash Flows for
the Year Ended December 31, 2020 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2019
The following summarizes
the key components of our cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019:
Years Ended December 31,
2020
2019
Net cash used in operating activities
$ (7,546,100 )
$ (7,079,871 )
Net cash used in investing activities
(169,185 )
(552,967 )
Net cash provided by financing activities
7,664,281
6,154,910
Effect of exchange rate on cash
12,690
(9,468 )
Net decrease in cash
$ (38,314 )
$ (1,487,396 )
45
Net cash flow used in operating activities for the year
ended December 31, 2020 was $7,546,100, which primarily reflected our consolidated net loss of approximately $12,679,000, and
the changes in operating assets and liabilities, primarily consisting of an increase in prepaid expenses and other current assets
of approximately $207,000, a decrease in accrued liabilities and other payables of approximately $837,000, offset by a decrease
in accounts receivable – related party of approximately $217,000, an increase in accrued liabilities and other payables
– related parties of approximately $119,000, and the non-cash items adjustment primarily consisting of depreciation and
amortization of approximately $315,000, and stock-based compensation and service expense of approximately $5,494,000.
Net cash flow used in operating
activities for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $7,079,871, which primarily reflected our consolidated net loss of
approximately $18,070,000, the non-cash item adjustment consisting of change in warrants derivative liabilities of
approximately $2,817,000, and the changes in operating assets and liabilities, primarily consisting of an increase in
accounts receivable – related party of approximately $217,000, offset by a decrease in prepaid expenses and other
current assets of approximately $480,000, and an increase in accrued liabilities and other payables of approximately
$1,230,000, and the add-back of non-cash items mainly consisting of depreciation and amortization of approximately $507,000,
stock-based compensation and service expense of approximately $9,209,000, allocated financing costs of approximately
$525,000, impairment loss of approximately $1,010,000, and loss from noncontrolling interest deficit adjustment of
approximately $862,000.
We expect our cash
used in operating activities to increase due to the following :
● the
development and commercialization of new products;
● an
increase in professional staff and services; and
● an
increase in public relations and/or sales promotions for existing and/or new brands
as we expand within existing markets or enter new markets.
Net cash flow used in investing activities was $169,185
for the year ended December 31, 2020 as compared to $552,967 for the year ended December 31, 2019. During the year ended December
31, 2020, we made payment for improvement of commercial real estate of approximately $111,000 and made additional investment in
equity method investment of approximately $58,000.
During the year ended December 31, 2019, we made payment
for purchase of property and equipment of approximately $377,000, made payment for improvement of commercial real estate of approximately
$16,000, and made payment for equity method investment of approximately $159,000.
Net cash flow provided by financing activities was $7,664,281 for the year ended
December 31, 2020 as compared to $6,154,910 for the year ended December 31, 2019. During the year ended December 31, 2020, we
received proceeds from related party borrowings of $600,000 and net proceeds from equity offering of approximately $7,264,000
(net of cash paid for commission and offering costs of approximately $540,000), offset by repayments made for note payable –
related party of $200,000.
During the year ended December 31, 2019, we received proceeds from borrowings from
a related party of $3,600,000, and net proceeds from equity offering of approximately $5,365,000 (net of offering costs of approximately
$909,000), offset by repayments made to a related party for borrowings of $410,000, repayments for loan payable of $1,000,000,
and payment made for repurchase of warrants of 1,400,000.
Our capital requirements for the next twelve months primarily
relate to working capital requirements, including salaries, fees related to third parties’ professional services, reduction
of accrued liabilities, mergers, acquisitions and the development of business opportunities. These uses of cash will depend on
numerous factors including our sales and other revenues, and our ability to control costs. All funds received have been expended
in the furtherance of growing the business. The following trends are reasonably likely to result in a material decrease in our
liquidity over the near to long term:
● an
increase in working capital requirements to finance our current business, including ongoing
research and development programs, clinical studies, as well as commercial strategies;
● the
use of capital for mergers, acquisitions and the development of business opportunities;
● addition
of administrative personnel as the business grows; and
● the
cost of being a public company.
In the third quarter of 2019, we had secured a $20 million credit facility (Line
of Credit) provided by our Chairman, Wenzhao Lu. The unsecured credit facility bears interest at a rate of 5% and provides
for maturity on drawn loans 36 months after funding. The note is not convertible to equity. As of December 31, 2020, the total
principal amount outstanding under the Credit Line was $3.2 million and we have approximately $16.8 million remaining available
under the Line Credit.
46
On December 13, 2019, we
entered into an Open Market Sale Agreement SM (the “Sales Agreement”) with Jefferies LLC, as sales
agent (“Jefferies”), pursuant to which we may offer and sell, from time to time, through Jefferies, shares of our
common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, having an aggregate offering price of up to $20.0 million. On April 6, 2020, the
date on which we filed our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, our
registration statement became subject to the offering limits set forth in General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3. As
of April 6, 2020, the aggregate market value of our outstanding common stock held by non-affiliates, or public
float, was $39,564,237, based on 23,691,160 shares of our outstanding common stock that were held
by non-affiliates on such date and a price of $1.67 per share, which was the price at which our common stock was
last sold on The Nasdaq Capital Market on February 19, 2020 (a date within 60 days of the date hereof), calculated in
accordance with General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3. We have not offered any securities pursuant to
General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3 in the 12 calendar months preceding the date of this prospectus supplement.
We filed a prospectus supplement to amend and supplement the information in our prospectus and original prospectus supplement
based on the amount of securities that we are eligible to sell under General Instruction I.B.6
of Form S-3. After giving effect to the $13,000,000 offering limit imposed by General Instruction I.B.6
of Form S-3, we may offer and sell additional shares of our common stock having an aggregate offering price of
up to $13,000,000 from time to time through Jefferies acting as our sales agent in accordance with the terms of
the sales agreement. As of December 31, 2020, we sold a total of 4,052,008 shares of our common stock through Jefferies
with an aggregate offering price of $7,077,835 and we have approximately $7.9 million offering price remaining available
under the Sales Agreement.
We estimate that based on current plans and assumptions,
that our available cash will be insufficient to satisfy our cash requirements under our present operating expectations through
cash available under our Credit Line and sales of equity through our Sales Agreement. Other than funds received from the sale
of our equity and advances from our related party, and cash resource generating from our operations, we presently have no other
significant alternative source of working capital. We have used these funds to fund our operating expenses, pay our obligations
and grow our company. We will need to raise significant additional capital to fund our operations and to provide working capital
for our ongoing operations and obligations. Therefore, our future operation is dependent on our ability to secure additional financing.
Financing transactions may include the issuance of equity or debt securities, obtaining credit facilities, or other financing
mechanisms. However, the trading price of our common stock and a downturn in the U.S. equity and debt markets could make it more
difficult to obtain financing through the issuance of equity or debt securities. Even if we are able to raise the funds required,
it is possible that we could incur unexpected costs and expenses or experience unexpected cash requirements that would force us
to seek alternative financing. Furthermore, if we issue additional equity or debt securities, stockholders may experience additional
dilution or the new equity securities may have rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of existing holders of our common
stock. The inability to obtain additional capital may restrict our ability to grow and may reduce our ability to continue to conduct
business operations. If we are unable to obtain additional financing, we will be required to cease our operations. To date, we
have not considered this alternative, nor do we view it as a likely occurrence.
Contractual Obligations and Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
Contractual Obligations
We have certain fixed contractual obligations and commitments that include future
estimated payments. Changes in our business needs, cancellation provisions, and other factors may result in actual payments differing
from the estimates. We cannot provide certainty regarding the timing and amounts of payments. We have presented below a summary
of the most significant assumptions used in our determination of amounts presented in the tables, in order to assist in the review
of this information within the context of our consolidated financial position, results of operations, and cash flows. The following
tables summarize our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2020, and the effect these obligations are expected to have on
our liquidity and cash flows in future periods.
Payments Due by Period
Contractual obligations:
Total
Less than 1 year
1-3 years
3-5 years
5 + years
Operating lease commitment
$ 160,820
$ 88,820
$ 72,000
$ -
$ -
Acquisition consideration
100,000
100,000
-
-
-
Borrowings from related party (principal)
3,590,000
-
3,590,000
-
-
Accrued interest – related party
167,956
167,956
-
-
-
Epicon equity investment obligation
842,189
280,730
561,459
-
-
AVAR joint venture commitment
10,765,626
765,626
5,000,000
5,000,000
-
Total
$ 15,626,591
$ 1,403,132
$ 9,223,459
$ 5,000,000
$ -
47
Off-balance Sheet Arrangements
We presently do not have off-balance sheet
arrangements.
Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk
A portion of our operations are in China. Thus, a portion of our revenues and operating
results may be impacted by exchange rate fluctuations between RMB and US dollars. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019,
we had an unrealized foreign currency translation gain of approximately $67,000 and an unrealized foreign currency translation
loss of approximately $21,000, respectively, because of changes in the exchange rate.
Inflation
The effect of inflation on our revenue and
operating results was not significant.
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
As a smaller reporting company, as defined in Rule 12b-2 of
the Exchange Act, we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
The financial statements begin on page F-1.
ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL
DISCLOSURE
Previous independent registered public accounting firm
On September 20, 2019 (the “Dismissal Date”), the
Company advised RBSM LLP (the “Former Auditor”) that it was dismissed as the Company’s independent
registered public accounting firm. The decision to dismiss the Former Auditor as the Company’s independent registered public
accounting firm was approved by the Company’s Board of Directors.
During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 and through
the Dismissal Date, the Company has not had any disagreements with the Former Auditor on any matter of accounting principles or
practices, financial statement disclosure or auditing scope or procedure, which disagreements, if not resolved to the Former Auditor’s
satisfaction, would have caused them to make reference thereto in their reports on the Company’s financial statements for
such years.
Except as set forth below, during the years ended December 31,
2018 and 2017 and through the Dismissal Date, the reports of the Former Auditor on the Company’s financial statements did
not contain any adverse opinion or disclaimer of opinion, and such reports were not qualified or modified as to uncertainty, audit
scope, or accounting principle, except that the report contained a paragraph stating there was substantial doubt about the Company’s
ability to continue as a going concern.
New independent registered public accounting firm
On September 23, 2019 (the “Engagement Date”), the
Company engaged Marcum LLP (“New Auditor”) as its independent registered public accounting firm for the Company’s
fiscal year ended December 31, 2019. The decision to engage the New Auditor as the Company’s independent registered public
accounting firm was approved by the Company’s Board of Directors.
During the two most recent fiscal years and through the Engagement
Date, the Company has not consulted with the New Auditor regarding either:
1.
application of accounting principles to any specified transaction,
either completed or proposed, or the type of audit opinion that might be rendered on the Company’s financial statements,
and neither a written report was provided to the Company nor oral advice was provided that the New Auditor concluded was an
important factor considered by the Company in reaching a decision as to the accounting, auditing or financial reporting issue;
or
2.
any matter that was either the subject of a disagreement
(as defined in Regulation S-K, Item 304(a)(1)(iv) and the related instructions) or reportable event (as defined in Regulation
S-K, Item 304(a)(1)(v)).
48
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
We maintain
disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that material information required to be disclosed in our
periodic reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or 1934 Act, is recorded, processed,
summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms and to ensure that such
information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and
Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. We
carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including the principal
executive officer and the principal financial officer (principal financial officer), of the effectiveness of the design and
operation of our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rule 13(a)-15(e) under the 1934 Act, as of the end of the
period covered by this report. During evaluation of disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2020 conducted as
part of our annual audit and preparation of our annual financial statements, the CEO and CFO conducted an evaluation of the
effectiveness of the design and operations of our disclosure controls and procedures and concluded that our disclosure
controls and procedures were not effective due to the lack of segregation of duties resulting from our small size.
Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation
of the financial statements included in this annual report. The financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting
principles generally accepted in the United States of America and reflect management’s judgment and estimates concerning
effects of events and transactions that are accounted for or disclosed.
Management is also responsible for establishing and maintaining
adequate internal control over financial reporting. Our internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and
procedures that pertain to our ability to record, process, summarize and report reliable data. Management recognizes that there
are inherent limitations in the effectiveness of any internal control over financial reporting, including the possibility of human
error and the circumvention or overriding of internal control. Accordingly, even effective internal control over financial reporting
can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement presentation. Further, because of changes in conditions,
the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting may vary over time.
Management regularly assesses controls and did so most recently
for our financial reporting as of December 31, 2020. This assessment was based on criteria for effective internal control over
financial reporting described in the Internal Control Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations
(COSO) of the Treadway Commission. Based on this assessment, management has concluded that our internal control over financial
reporting was not effective as of December 31, 2020 due to the lack of segregation of duties resulting from our small size. In
addition, due to the lack of segregation of duties and limited resources, the Company has a small accounting staff to prepare
and review its financial statements. This issue has risen to a material weakness for the year ended December 31, 2020.
In light of the material weakness, we performed additional analyses
and procedures in order to conclude that our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020 included in
this Annual Report on Form 10-K were fairly stated in accordance with US GAAP. Accordingly, management believes that despite our
material weakness, our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020 are fairly stated, in all material
respects, in accordance with US GAAP.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal control over financial
reporting, as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act, during the quarter ended December 31, 2020 that
have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Attestation Report of the Registered Public Accounting Firm
This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not include an attestation
report by our independent registered public accounting firm, regarding internal control over financial reporting. As a smaller
reporting company, our internal control over financial reporting was not subject to audit by our independent registered public
accounting firm pursuant to rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission that permit us to provide only management’s
report.
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
None.
49
PART III
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Directors and Executive Officers
Below are the names of and certain information regarding our
executive officers and directors as of the date hereof:
Name
Age
Position
Wenzhao Lu
63
Chairman of the Board of Directors
David Jin, MD, PhD
53
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
Meng Li
43
Chief Operating Officer, Secretary and Director
Luisa Ingargiola
53
Chief Financial Officer
Steven A. Sanders
75
Director
Yancen Lu
46
Director
Wilbert J. Tauzin II
76
Director
William B. Stilley, III
53
Director
Tevi Troy
53
Director
Yue “Charles” Li
47
Director
Officers are elected annually by the Board of Directors (subject
to the terms of any employment agreement), at our annual meeting, to hold such officer until an officer’s successor has
been duly appointed and qualified, unless an officer sooner dies, resigns or is removed by the Board.
The principal occupation and business experience during at least
the past five years for our executive officers and directors is as follows:
Wenzhao Lu, Chairman of the Board of Directors
Mr. Wenzhao Lu is our Chairman of the Board. He is a seasoned
healthcare entrepreneur with extensive operational knowledge and experience in China. He has been serving as Chairman of the Board
for the Daopei Medical Group, or DPMG, since 2010. Under his leadership, DPMG has recently expanded its clinical network involving
a state-of-the-art stem cell bank at Wuhan Biolake, three top-ranked private hospitals (located in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hebei),
specialty hematology laboratories, as well as a hematology research institute, with more than 100 partnering and collaborating
hospitals in China. DPMG was founded by Professor Daopei Lu, a renowned hematologist pioneering in hematopoietic stem cell transplant
and member of the Academy of Engineering in China. Mr. Wenzhao Lu received a Bachelor of Arts from Temple University Tyler School
of Arts in 1988 and subsequently worked as senior Art Director at Ogilvy & Mather Advertising Company. Prior to joining DPMG,
Mr. Lu served as Chief Operating Officer for BioTime Asia Limited, which is a subsidiary of BioTime, Inc. (NYSE American: BTX)
in 2009. Mr. Lu is qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive operational knowledge of, and executive level management
experience in, the healthcare industry.
50
David Jin, Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
Dr. David Jin, MD, PhD, is our Chief Executive Officer, President
and a member of the Board of Directors. From 2009 to 2017, Dr. Jin has served as the Chief Medical Officer of BioTime, Inc. (NYSE
American: BTX), a clinical stage regenerative medicine company with a focus on pluripotent stem cell technology. Dr. Jin also
acts as a senior translational clinician-scientist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Ansary Stem Cell Center at Weill
Cornell Medical College of Cornell University. Prior to his current endeavors, Dr. Jin was Chief Consultant/Advisor for various
biotech/pharmaceutical companies regarding hematology, oncology, immunotherapy and stem cell-based technology development. Dr.
Jin has been Principle Investigator in more than 15 pre-clinical and clinical trials, as well as author/co-author of over 80 peer-reviewed
scientific abstracts, articles, reviews, and book chapters. Dr. Jin studied medicine at SUNY Downstate College of Medicine in
Brooklyn, New York. He received his clinical training and subsequent faculty tenure at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital (the
teaching hospital for both Cornell and Columbia Universities) in the areas of internal medicine, hematology, and clinical oncology.
Dr. Jin was honored as Top Chief Medical Officer by ExecRank in 2012, as well as recognized by Leading Physicians of the World
in 2015. Dr. Jin is qualified to serve as a director because of his role with us, and his extensive operational knowledge of,
and executive level management experience in, the healthcare industry.
Meng Li, Chief Operating Officer and Secretary
Ms. Meng Li is our Chief Operating Officer and Secretary and
a former member of the Board of Directors. Ms. Li has over 15 years of executive experience in international marketing, branding,
communications, and media investment consultancy. Ms. Li served as Managing Director at Maxus/GroupM (a WPP Group company) where
she was responsible for business P&L and corporate management from 2006 to 2015. Prior to joining Maxus/Group M, Ms. Li worked
for Zenith Media (a Publicis Group company) from 2000 to 2006 as Senior Manager. Ms. Li received a Bachelor of Arts in International
Economic Law from Dalian Maritime University in China.
Luisa Ingargiola, Chief Financial Officer
Luisa Ingargiola is
our Chief Financial Officer. Ms Ingargiola has significant experience serving as Chief Financial Officer or Audit Chair for multiple
NASDAQ and NYSE companies. She currently serves as Director and Audit Chair for several public companies including ElectraMeccanica
(NASDAQ:SOLO), AgEagle (NYSE:UAVS), Siyata Mobile (NASDAQ:SYTA) and Progress Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ:PGRWU). From 2007
through 2016, Ms. Ingargiola served as the Chief Financial Officer and then Director at MagneGas Corporation (Nasdaq: MNGA.Prior
to 2007, Ms. Ingargiola held various roles as Budget Director and Investment Analyst in several private companies. Ms. Ingargiola
graduated in 1989 from Boston University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a concentration in Finance.
In 1996, she received her MBA in Health Administration from the University of South Florida. Ms. Ingargiola is qualified to serve
as a Chief Financial Officer because of her extensive knowledge corporate governance, regulatory requirements, executive leadership
and knowledge of, and experience in, financing and M&A transactions.
Steven A. Sanders, Director
Steven A. Sanders is a member of the Board of Directors. Since
January 2017, Mr. Sanders has been Of Counsel to the law firm of Ortoli Rosenstadt LLP. From July 2007 until January 2017, Mr.
Sanders was a Senior Partner of Ortoli Rosenstadt LLP. From January 1, 2004 until June 30, 2007, he was Of Counsel to the law
firm of Rubin, Bailin, Ortoli, LLP. From January 1, 2001 to December 31, 2003, he was Counsel to the law firm of Spitzer &
Feldman PC. Mr. Sanders also serves as a Director of Helijet International, Inc. and Electrameccanica Vehicles Corp. (OTCQB:ECCTF).
Additionally, he has been a director at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts since October 2013 and has been a director of the
Bay Street Theater since February 2015. Mr. Sanders received his JD from Cornell University and his BBA from The City College
of New York. Mr. Sanders is qualified to serve as a director because of his corporate, securities and international law experience,
including working with companies in the life sciences industry.
51
Yancen Lu, Director
Yancen Lu is a member
of the Board of Directors. Mr. Lu has more than 20 years of experience in investment banking and equity investment management.
He is the Founder and CEO of PagodaTree Partners, a healthcare PE fund. Before this, Mr. Lu was the Managing Director of FountainVest
Partners. In addition to his professionalism in securities, investment and capital management, Mr. Lu has a special focus and comprehensive
understanding of the global medical and healthcare industry. He served as Director of leading healthcare corporations including
Sino Hospital Investment Corporation (Hong Kong), Chang’an Hospital (the largest private hospital in Northwest China), and
DIH Medical Technologies. Mr. Lu received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Engineering Economics from Tianjin University.
Mr. Lu is qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive operational knowledge of, and executive level management experience
in, the healthcare industry.
Wilbert J. Tauzin II, Director
Wilbert J. Tauzin
II is a member of the Board of Directors. From December 2010 until March 1, 2014, Congressman Tauzin served as Special Legislative
Counsel to Alston & Bird LLP. From December 2004 to June 2010, Congressman Tauzin was President and Chief Executive Officer
of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a trade group that serves as one of the pharmaceutical industry’s
top lobbying groups. He served 12.5 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Louisiana’s 3rd Congressional
District. From January 2001 through February 2004, Congressman Tauzin served as Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and
Commerce. He also served as a senior member of the House Resources Committee and Deputy Majority Whip. Prior to serving as a member
of Congress, Congressman Tauzin was a member of the Louisiana State Legislature, where he served as Chairman of the House Natural
Resources Committee and Chief Administration Floor Leader. He currently serves as lead independent director of LHC Group, a publicly
traded provider of quality home health care. Congressman Tauzin received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Nicholls State University
and a Juris Doctor degree from Louisiana State University. Congressman Tauzin is qualified to serve as a director because of his
extensive knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry and his experience as a director of several publicly-traded and privately-held
companies.
William B. Stilley, III, Director
William B. Stilley
is a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Stilley has been the chief executive officer and member of the board of directors of
Adial Pharmaceuticals, Inc. since December 2010. From August 2008 until December 2010, he was the vice president, business development
and strategic projects at Clinical Data, Inc. (NASDQ: CLDA). From February 2002, Mr. Stilley was the COO and CFO of Adenosine Therapeutics,
LLC until certain assets of Adenosine Therapeutics were acquired by Clinical Data, Inc. in August 2008. Mr. Stilley has advised
both public and private companies on financing and M&A transactions, has been the interim CFO of a public company, the interim
Chief Business Officer and then Advisor for Diffusion Pharmaceuticals from September 2015 through March 2018, and the COO and CFO
of a number of private companies. Before entering the business community, Mr. Stilley served as Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Mr. Stilley has an MBA with honors from the Darden School of Business and a B.S. in Commerce/Marketing from the McIntire School
of Commerce at the University of Virginia. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of Virginia BIO, the statewide biotechnology
organization. Mr. Stilley is qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive knowledge of the biotechnology industry,
significant executive leadership and operational experience, and knowledge of, and experience in, financing and M&A transactions.
Tevi Troy, Director
Tevi Troy is a member of the Board of Directors and a former
Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Troy has previously been the founder
and CEO of the American Health Policy Institute and a Senior Fellow at Hudson Institute, where he remains an Adjunct Fellow.
On August 3, 2007, Dr. Troy was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Deputy Secretary of HHS. As Deputy Secretary,
Dr. Troy was the chief operating officer of the largest civilian department in the federal government, with a budget of $716 billion
and over 67,000 employees. Dr. Troy has extensive White House experience, having served in several high-level positions over a
five-year period, culminating in his service as Deputy Assistant and then Acting Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy.
Dr. Troy has held high-level positions on Capitol Hill as well. From 1998 to 2000, Dr. Troy served as the Policy Director for Senator
John Ashcroft. From 1996 to 1998, Dr. Troy was Senior Domestic Policy Adviser and later Domestic Policy Director for the House
Policy Committee, chaired by Christopher Cox. In addition to his senior level government work and health care expertise, Dr. Troy
is also a best-selling presidential historian and the author of five books, including, most recently, "Fight House:
Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump," which the Wall Street Journal listed as one of the top political
books of 2020. Dr. Troy’s many other affiliations include: contributing editor for Washingtonian magazine; member of the
publication committee of National Affairs; member of the Board of Fellows of the Jewish Policy Center; a Senior Fellow at the Potomac
Institute; and a member of the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense. Dr. Troy has a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from
Cornell University and an M.A and Ph.D. in American Civilization from the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Troy is qualified
to serve as a director because of his extensive knowledge of the healthcare industry and his significant leadership experience.
52
Yue “Charles” Li
Mr. Li has about 20 years of experience in M&A and capital
markets in China and the U.S. Mr. Li currently is a Managing Director at PagodaTree Partners, a private equity company with a
focus on healthcare in Beijing. Prior to PagodaTree, he was a senior executive at a major conglomerate in China where he successfully
closed $2 billion M&A transactions in healthcare and insurance areas. Previously, Mr. Li spent 8 years in Deloitte, as a director
of financial advisory services in Beijing and capital markets in New York. His key clients included Merrill Lynch, Blackrock,
KKR etc. In his early career, Mr. Li served for top tier financial institutions such as Credit Suisse and Fannie Mae, responsible
for asset allocation strategy and risk management for multibillion USD portfolios. Mr. Li received Master’s degree from
the Olin School of Business at Washington University in 2000 and a Bachelor of Engineering from Tianjin University in 1996. He
is a CFA charter holder. Mr. Li is qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive investment and executive level management
experience.
Board Composition
Our business and affairs are organized under the direction of
our board of directors, which currently consists of nine members. The primary responsibility of our board of directors is to provide
oversight, strategic guidance, counseling, and direction to our management team. Our board of directors meets on a regular basis
and additionally as required.
A majority of the authorized number of directors constitutes
a quorum of the Board of Directors for the transaction of business. The directors must be present at the meeting to constitute
a quorum. However, any action required or permitted to be taken by the Board of Directors may be taken without a meeting if all
members of the Board of Directors individually or collectively consent in writing to the action.
Director Independence
Our board of directors currently consists
of nine members. Our board of directors has determined that Yancen Lu, William B. Stilley, III, Steven A. Sanders, Tevi Troy
and Yue “Charles” Li, qualify as independent directors in accordance with the Nasdaq Capital Market (“Nasdaq”)
listing requirements. Mr. Wenzhao Lu, Dr. Jin, Meng Li and Wilbert Tauzin II are not considered independent. Nasdaq’s independence
definition includes a series of objective tests, such as that the director is not, and has not been for at least three (3) years,
one of our employees and that neither the director nor any of his or her family members has engaged in various types of business
dealings with us. In addition, as required by Nasdaq rules, our board of directors has made a subjective determination as to each
independent director that no relationships exist that, in the opinion of our board of directors, would interfere with the exercise
of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. In making these determinations, our board of directors
reviewed and discussed information provided by the directors and us with regard to each director’s business and personal
activities and relationships as they may relate to us and our management. There are no family relationships among any of our directors
or executive officers.
As required under Nasdaq rules and
regulations, our independent directors meet in regularly scheduled executive sessions at which only independent directors are
present.
Family Relationships
There are no family relationships among our directors or executive
officers.
Board Leadership Structure and Role in Risk Oversight
Our Board of Directors, or the Board, is primarily responsible
for overseeing our risk management processes on behalf of our company. The Board receives and reviews periodic reports from management,
auditors, legal counsel, and others, as considered appropriate regarding our company’s assessment of risks. In addition,
the Board focuses on the most significant risks facing our company and our company’s general risk management strategy, and
also ensures that risks undertaken by our company are consistent with the board’s appetite for risk. While the Board oversees
our company’s risk management, management is responsible for day-to-day risk management processes. We believe this division
of responsibilities is the most effective approach for addressing the risks facing our company and that our board leadership structure
supports this approach.
Involvement in Certain Legal Proceedings
To our knowledge, our directors and executive officers have
not been involved in any of the following events during the past ten years:
●
any bankruptcy petition filed by or against such person
or any business of which such person was a general partner or executive officer either at the time of the bankruptcy or within
two years prior to that time;
●
any conviction in a criminal proceeding or being subject
to a pending criminal proceeding (excluding traffic violations and other minor offenses);
53
●
being subject to any order, judgment, or decree, not subsequently
reversed, suspended or vacated, of any court of competent jurisdiction, permanently or temporarily enjoining him from or otherwise
limiting his involvement in any type of business, securities or banking activities or to be associated with any person practicing
in banking or securities activities;
●
being found by a court of competent jurisdiction in a civil
action, the SEC or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to have violated a Federal or state securities or commodities
law, and the judgment has not been reversed, suspended, or vacated;
●
being subject of, or a party to, any Federal or state judicial
or administrative order, judgment decree, or finding, not subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated, relating to an alleged
violation of any Federal or state securities or commodities law or regulation, any law or regulation respecting financial
institutions or insurance companies, or any law or regulation prohibiting mail or wire fraud or fraud in connection with any
business entity; or
●
being subject of or party to any sanction or order, not
subsequently reversed, suspended, or vacated, of any self-regulatory organization, any registered entity or any equivalent
exchange, association, entity or organization that has disciplinary authority over its members or persons associated with
a member.
Board Committees
Establishment of Board Committees and Adoption of Charters
In November 2018, the Company established a Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee, a Compensation Committee and an Audit Committee (collectively, the “Committees”) and approved
and adopted charters to govern each of the Committees.
In connection with the establishment of the Nominating
and Corporate Governance Committee, Compensation Committee and Audit Committee, the Board of Directors of the Company appointed
members to each such committee. Currently, all three committees are comprised of at least three (3) directors meeting the requirements
set forth in each applicable charter. The membership of these three standing committees of the Board of Directors of the
Company is as follows:
Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee
Compensation Committee
Audit Committee
Steven Sanders (Chairman)
Yancen Lu (Chairman)
William Stilley (Chairman)
Tevi Troy
Steven Sanders
Yancen Lu
William Stilley
Tevi Troy
Steve Sanders
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Our board of directors has determined that each of the members
of the Nominating and Governance Committee (the “Governance Committee”) are “independent directors” as
defined by Nasdaq. The Governance Committee generally responsible for recommending to our full board of directors’ policies,
procedures, and practices designed to help ensure that our corporate governance policies, procedures, and practices continue to
assist the board of directors and our management in effectively and efficiently promoting the best interests of our stockholders.
The Governance Committee is also responsible for selecting and recommending for approval by our board of directors and our stockholders
a slate of director nominees for election at each of our annual meetings of stockholders, and otherwise for determining the board
committee members and chairmen, subject to board of directors ratification, as well as recommending to the board director nominees
to fill vacancies or new positions on the board of directors or its committees that may occur or be created from time to time,
all in accordance with our bylaws and applicable law. The Governance Committee’s principal functions include:
●
developing and maintaining our corporate governance policy
guidelines;
●
developing and maintaining our codes of conduct and ethics;
●
overseeing the interpretation and enforcement of our Code
of Conduct and our Code of Ethics for Chief Executive Officer and Senior Financial and Accounting Officers;
●
evaluating the performance of our board of directors, its
committees, and committee chairmen and our directors; and
●
selecting and recommending a slate of director nominees
for election at each of our annual meetings of the stockholders and recommending to the board director nominees to fill vacancies
or new positions on the board of directors or its committees that may occur from time to time.
54
During 2020, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
did not meet. The Governance Committee is governed by a written charter approved by our board of directors. A copy of the Governance
Committee’s charter is posted on the Company’s website at www.avalon-globocare.com in the “Investors”
section of the website. In identifying potential independent board of directors’ candidates with significant senior-level
professional experience, the Governance Committee solicits candidates from the board of directors, senior management and others
and may engage a search firm in the process. The Governance Committee reviews and narrows the list of candidates and interviews
potential nominees. The final candidate is also introduced and interviewed by the board of directors and the lead director if
one has been appointed. In general, in considering whether to recommend any particular candidate for inclusion in our board of
directors’ slate of recommended director nominees, the Governance Committee will apply the criteria set forth in our corporate
governance guidelines. These criteria include the candidate’s integrity, business acumen, commitment to understanding our
business and industry, experience, conflicts of interest and the ability to act in the interests of our stockholders. Further,
specific consideration is given to, among other things, diversity of background and experience that a candidate would bring to
our board of directors. The Governance Committee does not assign specific weights to particular criteria and no particular criterion
is a prerequisite for each prospective nominee. We believe that the backgrounds and qualifications of our directors, considered
as a group, should provide a composite mix of experience, knowledge and abilities that will allow our board of directors to fulfill
its responsibilities. Stockholders may recommend individuals to the Governance Committee for consideration as potential director
candidates by submitting their names, together with appropriate biographical information and background materials to our Governance
Committee. Assuming that appropriate biographical and background material has been provided on a timely basis, the Governance
Committee will evaluate stockholder recommended candidates by following substantially the same process, and applying substantially
the same criteria, as it follows for candidates submitted by others.
Audit Committee
We have a separately-designated standing Audit Committee established
in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Our
board of directors has determined that the members are all “independent directors” as defined by the rules of Nasdaq
applicable to members of an audit committee and Rule 10A-3(b)(i) under the Exchange Act. In addition, Mr. Stilley is an “audit
committee financial expert” as defined in Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K and demonstrates “financial sophistication”
as defined by the rules of The NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. The Audit Committee is appointed by our board of directors to assist
our board of directors in monitoring (1) the integrity of our financial statements, (2) our compliance with legal and regulatory
requirements, and (3) the independence and performance of our internal and external auditors. The Audit Committee’s principal
functions include:
●
reviewing our annual audited financial statements with management
and our independent auditors, including major issues regarding accounting and auditing principles and practices and financial
reporting that could significantly affect our financial statements;
●
reviewing our quarterly financial statements with management and our
independent auditor prior to the filing of our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, including the results of the independent auditors’
reviews of the quarterly financial statements;
●
recommending to the board of directors the appointment of, and continued
evaluation of the performance of, our independent auditor;
●
approving the fees to be paid to our independent auditor for audit services
and approving the retention of our independent auditor for non-audit services and all fees for such services;
●
reviewing periodic reports from our independent auditor regarding our
auditor’s independence, including discussion of such reports with the auditor;
●
reviewing the adequacy of our overall control environment, including
internal financial controls and disclosure controls and procedures; and
●
reviewing with our management and legal counsel legal matters that may
have a material impact on our financial statements or our compliance policies and any material reports or inquiries received
from regulators or governmental agencies.
During 2020, the audit committee met four times. A copy of the
Audit Committee’s charter is posted on the Company’s website at www.avalon-globocare.com in the “Investors”
section of the website.
Meetings may be held from time to time to consider matters for
which approval of our Board of Directors is desirable or is required by law.
Compensation Committee
Our compensation
committee consists of Yancen Lu, Steven Sanders and Tevi Troy. Our board of directors has determined that each of the members
are an “independent director” as defined by the Nasdaq rules applicable to members of a compensation committee.
The Compensation Committee is responsible for establishing the compensation of our senior management, including salaries,
bonuses, termination arrangements, and other executive officer benefits as well as director compensation. The Compensation
Committee also administers our equity incentive plans. During the year ended December 31, 2020, the Compensation Committee
met one time. The Compensation Committee is governed by a written charter approved by the board of directors. A copy of the
Compensation Committee’s charter is posted on the Company’s website at www.avalon-globocare.com in the
“Investors” section of the website. The Compensation Committee works with the Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer and reviews and approves compensation decisions regarding senior management including compensation levels
and equity incentive awards. The Compensation Committee also approves employment and compensation agreements with our key
personnel and directors. The Compensation Committee has the power and authority to conduct or authorize studies, retain
independent consultants, accountants or others, and obtain unrestricted access to management, our internal auditors, human
resources and accounting employees and all information relevant to its responsibilities.
55
The responsibilities of the Compensation Committee, as stated
in its charter, include the following:
●
review and approve the Company’s compensation guidelines
and structure;
●
review and approve on an annual basis the corporate goals and objectives
with respect to compensation for the Chief Executive Officer;
●
review and approve on an annual basis the evaluation process
and compensation structure for the Company’s other officers, including salary, bonus, incentive and equity compensation;
and
●
periodically review and make recommendations to the Board of Directors
regarding the compensation of non-management directors.
The Compensation Committee is responsible for developing the
executive compensation philosophy and reviewing and recommending to the Board of Directors for approval all compensation policies
and compensation programs for the executive team.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of our executive officers currently
serves, or in the past year has served, as a member of the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity that has
one or more executive officers on our board of directors or compensation committee.
Code of Ethics
We have a code of ethics that applies to all of our employees,
including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer and principal accounting officer, and the Board. A copy
of this code is available in our employee handbook and under the “About Us – Code of Conduct” section of our
website at www.avalon-globocare.com. In addition, we intend to post on our website all disclosures that are required by law or
the listing standards of our applicable trading market concerning any amendments to, or waivers from, any provision of the code.
The reference to our website address does not constitute incorporation by reference of the information contained at or available
through our website, and you should not consider it to be a part of this report.
Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Our directors and executive officers are indemnified as provided
by the Delaware law and our Bylaws. These provisions state that our directors may cause us to indemnify a director or former director
against all costs, charges and expenses, including an amount paid to settle an action or satisfy a judgment, actually and reasonably
incurred by him or her as a result of him or her acting as a director. The indemnification of costs can include an amount paid
to settle an action or satisfy a judgment. Such indemnification is at the discretion of our board of directors and is subject
to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s policy regarding indemnification.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the
Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions,
or otherwise. We have been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission, such indemnification is against
public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.
56
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Executive Officers’ Compensation
The following table sets forth information concerning all cash
and non-cash compensation awarded to, earned by or paid to our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operation
Officer during the last two (2) fiscal years. No other executive officer received compensation in excess of $100,000 during the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2020.
Summary Annual Compensation Table
Name and
Principal
Position
Fiscal
Year
Salary
Stock
Award
Option
Awards
Non-Equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation
Change in
Pension Value
and Non-
Qualified
Deferred
Compensation
Earnings
All Other
Compensation
Total
($)
($)
($)
($)
($)
($)
($)
Dr. David Jin
2020
360,000
-
642,584
-
-
-
1,002,584
CEO
2019
540,000
-
394,722
-
-
-
934,722
Luisa Ingargiola
2020
350,000
-
712,028
-
-
-
1,062,028
CFO
2019
490,000
-
833,333
-
-
-
1,323,333
Meng Li
2020
340,000
-
481,942
-
-
-
821,942
COO and Secretary
2019
374,000
-
394,722
-
-
-
768,722
Employment Agreements
David Jin
On December 1, 2016, the Company entered into an Executive Employment
Agreement with David Jin, the Company’s CEO and President. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Jin will be employed as President
and Chief Executive Officer of the Company until November 30, 2017 unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement.
During the term of the agreement, Mr. Jin will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $200,000 and will be eligible
for a discretionary performance bonus, equity awards and to participate in employee benefits plans as the Company may institute
from time to time at the discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Jin may be terminated
for “cause” as defined and Mr. Jin may resign for “good reason” as defined. In the event Mr. Jin is terminated
without cause or resigns for good reason, the Company will be required to pay Mr. Jin all accrued salary and bonuses, reimbursement
for all business expenses and Mr. Jin’s salary for one year. In the event Mr. Jin is terminated with cause, resigns without
good reason, dies or is disabled, the Company will be required to pay Mr. Jin all accrued salary and bonuses and reimbursement
for all business expenses. Under the agreement Mr. Jin is subject to confidentiality, non-compete and non-solicitation restrictions.
On January 3, 2019, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Dr. Jin, pursuant to which his annual base salary set forth in his employment agreement was increased to $360,000 effective
January 1, 2019. Further, the Company agreed to grant Dr. Jin stock options to acquire 150,000 shares of common stock at an exercise
price of $2.00 per share.
On February 20, 2020, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Dr. Jin pursuant to which the term of Dr. Jin’s Executive Employment Agreement entered between the Company and Dr.
Jin dated December 1, 2016 was extended an additional three years and granted Dr. Jin a Stock Option to acquire 400,000 shares
of common stock at an exercise price of $1.52 per share for a period of ten years.
Meng Li
On January 11,
2017, Avalon Shanghai entered into an Executive Employment Agreement with Meng Li, the Company’s COO and Secretary.
Pursuant to the agreement, Ms. Li will be employed as Chief Operating Officer and President of Avalon Shanghai through
November 30, 2019, unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. During the term of the agreement, Ms. Li
will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $100,000 and will be eligible for a discretionary performance
bonus, equity awards and to participate in employee benefits plans as the Avalon Shanghai may institute from time to time at
the discretion of its Board of Directors. Pursuant to the agreement, Ms. Li may be terminated for “cause” as
defined and Ms. Li may resign for “good reason” as defined. In the event Ms. Li is terminated without cause or
resigns for good reason, Avalon Shanghai will be required to pay Ms. Li all accrued salary and bonuses, reimbursement for all
business expenses and Ms. Li’s salary for one year. In the event Ms. Li is terminated with cause, resigns without good
reason, dies or is disabled, Avalon Shanghai will be required to pay Ms. Li all accrued salary and bonuses and reimbursement
for all business expenses. Under the agreement Ms. Li is subject to confidentiality, non-compete and non-solicitation
restrictions.
57
On January 3, 2019, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Ms. Li, pursuant to which her annual base salary set forth in her employment agreement was increased to $340,000 effective
January 1, 2019. Further, the Company agreed to grant Ms. Li stock options to acquire 150,000 shares of common stock at an exercise
price of $2.00 per share.
On February 20, 2020, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Meng Li pursuant to which the term of Ms. Li’s Executive Employment Agreement entered between the Company’ subsidiary
and Ms. Li dated January 11, 2017 was extended an additional three years and granted Ms. Li a Stock Option to acquire 300,000
shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.52 per share for a period of ten years.
Luisa Ingargiola
On February 21, 2017, Ms. Ingargiola and the Company entered
into an Executive Retention Agreement effective February 9, 2017 pursuant to which Ms. Ingargiola agreed to serve as Chief Financial
Officer in consideration of an annual salary of $200,000 to be increased to $225,000 on the 60-day anniversary. The Company has
agreed to provide a bonus of 50% of her base salary upon the Company timely filing its annual report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2017 and the Company raising gross proceeds of $20 million in debt and/or equity capital and a bonus of 100%
of her base salary upon the Company achieving (i) any merger or sale of the Company or its assets, (ii) the Company achieving
adjusted EBITDA of $10 million in a fiscal year, (iii) the Company achieving a listing on a national exchange and then or subsequently
raising gross proceeds in the amount of $10 million. The Company also granted Ms. Ingargiola a Stock Option to acquire two million
shares of common stock of the Company at an exercise price of $0.50 per share for a period of ten years. The Stock Options vest
in 36 equal tranches commencing on the grant date. The Company and Ms. Ingargiola also entered into an Indemnification Agreement.
The employment of Ms. Ingargiola is at will and may be terminated
at any time, with or without formal cause. Pursuant to the terms of executive retention agreement with Ms. Ingargiola, the Company
has agreed to provide specified severance and bonus amounts and to accelerate the vesting on their equity awards upon termination
upon a change of control or an involuntary termination, as each term is defined in the agreements.
In the event of a termination upon a change of control, Ms.
Ingargiola is entitled to receive an amount equal to 12 months of her base salary and the target bonus then in effect for the
executive officer for the year in which such termination occurs, such bonus payment to be pro-rated to reflect the full number
of months the executive remained in the Company’s employ. In addition, the vesting on any stock option held by the executive
officer will be accelerated in full. At the election of the executive officer, the Company will also continue to provide health
related employee insurance coverage for twelve months, at the Company’s expense.
In the event of an involuntary termination, Ms. Ingargiola is
entitled to receive an amount equal to six months of her base salary and the target bonus then in effect for the executive officer
for the six months in which such termination occurs, such bonus payment to be pro-rated to reflect the full number of months the
executive remained in the Company’s employ. Such payment will be increased to 12 months upon the one-year anniversary of
the retention agreement. In addition, the vesting on any stock option held by the executive officer will be accelerated in full.
At the election of the executive officer, the Company will also continue to provide health related employee insurance coverage
for twelve months, at the Company’s expense.
On January 3, 2019, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Ms. Ingargiola, pursuant to which her annual base salary set forth in her employment agreement was increased to $350,000
effective January 1, 2019.
On February 20, 2020, the Company entered into a Letter Agreement
with Ms. Ingargiola granting Ms. Ingargiola a Stock Option to acquire 400,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.52
per share for a period of ten years.
Yu Zhou
On October 25, 2017, Dr. Yu Zhou and Genexosome entered into
an Executive Retention Agreement pursuant to which Dr. Zhou agreed to serve as Co-Chief Executive Officer in consideration of
an annual salary of $160,000. Dr. Zhou and Genexosome also entered into an Invention Assignment, Confidentiality, Non-Compete
and Non-Solicit Agreement. On August 14, 2019, Genexosome terminated Yu Zhou as Co-Chief Executive Officer. In addition, Dr. Zhou’s
Executive Retention Agreement was also terminated and he was not elected to serve as a director for the year ended 2020.
Option Exercises and Stock Vested
There were no options exercised by our executive officers or
stock vested to our executive officers during the year ended December 31, 2020.
58
Outstanding Equity Awards
The following table sets forth information with respect to the
outstanding equity awards of our principal executive officers and principal financial officer during 2020, and each person who
served as an executive officer of the Company as of December 31, 2020:
Outstanding Equity Awards
Option Awards
Stock Awards
Name and
principal
position
Number of
securities
underlying
unexercised
options
Exercisable
(#)
Number of
securities
underlying
unexercised
options
Unexercisable
(#)
Equity
incentive
plan
awards:
Number of
securities
underlying
unexercised
options
(#)
Options
exercise
price
($)
Option
expiration
Date
Number
of
shares
or units
of stock
that
have not
vested
(#)
Market
value of
shares
or units
of stock
that
have
not
vested
($)
Equity
incentive
plan
awards:
Number
of
unearned
shares,
units or
other
rights
that have
not
vested
(#)
Equity
incentive
plan
awards:
Market
or
payout
value
of
unearned
shares,
units
or other
rights
that
have not
vested
($)
Luisa Ingargiola, CFO
455,556
-
455,556
0.50
and
1.52
2/8/2027 and 2/18/2030
-
-
-
-
David Jin,
CEO
400,000
-
400,000
1.52
2/18/2030
-
-
-
-
Meng Li, COO and Secretary
300,000
-
300,000
1.52
2/18/2030
-
-
-
-
No Pension Benefits
The Company does not maintain any plan that provides for payments
or other benefits to its executive officers at, following or in connection with retirement and including, without limitation,
any tax-qualified defined benefit plans or supplemental executive retirement plans.
No Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
The Company does not maintain any defined contribution or other
plan that provides for the deferral of compensation on a basis that is not tax-qualified.
Director Compensation
Name
Fees
Earned
or Paid
in
Cash
$
Stock
Awards
$
Option
Awards
$
Non-equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation
$
Change in
Pension Value
and Non-
Qualified
Deferred
Compensation
Earnings
All Other Compensation
$
Total
$
Yue (Charles) Li (1)
60,000
-
116,808
-
-
-
176,808
Yancen Lu (2)
70,000
-
116,808
-
-
-
186,808
Wilbert Tauzin (3)
-
-
249,137
-
-
-
249,137
Wenzhao Lu
100,000
-
-
-
-
-
100,000
David Jin
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Meng Li
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Steven Sanders (4)
70,000
-
116,808
-
-
-
186,808
Tevi Troy (5)
60,000
-
116,808
-
-
-
176,808
William Stilley (6)
70,000
-
116,808
-
-
-
186,808
(1) Mr. Li’s 2020 compensation
consisted of cash of $60,000 and 80,000 options vested and valued at $116,808.
(2) Mr. Lu’s 2020 compensation
consisted of cash of $70,000 and 80,000 options vested and valued at $116,808.
(3) Mr. Tauzin’s 2020 compensation
consisted of 200,000 options vested and valued at $249,137.
(4) Mr. Sanders’s 2020 compensation
consisted of cash of $70,000 and 80,000 options vested and valued at $116,808.
(5) Mr. Troy’s 2020 compensation
consisted of cash of $60,000 and 80,000 options vested and valued at $116,808.
(6) Mr. Stilley’s 2020 compensation
consisted of cash of $70,000 and 80,000 options vested and valued at $116,808.
On
February 19, 2020, the Board of Directors of the Company approved an increase in the number of shares of common stock to be acquired
pursuant to option grants for all independent Directors from 50,000 shares to 80,000 shares annually going forward, which shall
vest at the rate of 20,000 shares under such option per quarter.
59
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED
STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
Beneficial ownership is determined
in accordance with the rules of the SEC and generally includes voting or investment power with respect to securities. In
accordance with SEC rules, shares of our common stock which may be acquired upon exercise of stock options or warrants which are
currently exercisable or which become exercisable within 60 days of the date of the applicable table below are deemed beneficially
owned by the holders of such options and warrants and are deemed outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage of ownership
of such person, but are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage of ownership of any other person.
Subject to community property laws, where applicable, the persons or entities named in the tables below have sole voting and investment
power with respect to all shares of our common stock indicated as beneficially owned by them.
The following table sets forth certain
information, as of March 29, 2021 with respect to the beneficial ownership of the outstanding common stock by (i) any holder of
more than five (5%) percent; (ii) each of our executive officers and directors; and (iii) our directors and executive officers
as a group. The numbers below reflect a 1:4 reverse stock split implemented on October 18, 2016. Except as otherwise indicated,
each of the stockholders listed below has sole voting and investment power over the shares beneficially owned.
Name of Beneficial Owner (1)
Common Stock Beneficially
Owned
Percentage of
Common Stock
(2)
Wenzhao Lu* (3)
30,045,161
33.0 %
David Jin, MD, PhD* (4)
16,000,000
17.6 %
Meng Li* (5)
5,600,000
6.2 %
Luisa Ingargiola* (6)
2,400,000
2.6 %
Yancen Lu* (7)
5,370,000
5.9 %
Steven A. Sanders* (8)
170,000
**
Wilbert J. Tauzin II* (9)
660,000
**
William B. Stilley III* (10)
170,000
**
Tevi Troy* (11)
170,000
**
Yue (Charles) Li* (12)
130,000
**
All officers and directors as a group (10 persons)
60,715,161
66.7 %
*
Officer and/or director of our company.
**
Less than 1.0%.
(1)
Except as otherwise indicated, the address of each beneficial
owner is c/o Avalon GloboCare Corp., 4400 Route 9 South, Suite 3100, Freehold, New Jersey 07728.
(2)
Applicable percentage ownership is based on
84,405,614 shares of common stock outstanding as of March 29, 2021, together with securities exercisable or convertible into
shares of common stock within 60 days of March 29, 2021 for each stockholder. Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance
with the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission and generally includes voting or investment power with respect to
securities. Shares of common stock that are currently exercisable or exercisable within 60 days of March 29, 2021 are deemed
to be beneficially owned by the person holding such securities for the purpose of computing the percentage of ownership of
such person, but are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other
person.
(3)
Wenzhao Lu holds (i) 28,545,161 shares of common stock and (ii) 1,500,000
vested options to acquire 1,500,000 shares of common stock of our company.
(4)
David Jin holds (i) 15,450,000 shares of common stock and (ii) 550,000
vested options to acquire 550,000 shares of common stock of our company.
(5)
Meng Li holds (i) 5,150,000 shares of common stock and (ii) 450,000
vested options to acquire 450,000 shares of common stock of our company.
(6)
Represents 2,400,000 vested options to acquire 2,400,000 shares of common
stock of our company.
(7)
Yancen Lu holds (i) 5,000,000 shares of common stock and (ii) 370,000
options, of which 350,000 shares have vested and an additional 20,000 shares shall vest within 60 days.
(8)
Represents stock option to acquire 170,000 shares of common
stock of our company, which included 20,000 shares to be vested within 60 days.
(9)
Represents stock option to acquire 660,000 shares of common stock of
our company, which included 10,000 shares to be vested within 60 days.
(10)
Represents stock option to acquire 170,000 shares of common stock of
our company, which included 20,000 shares to be vested within 60 days.
(11)
Represents stock option to acquire 170,000 shares of common stock of
our company, which included 20,000 shares to be vested within 60 days.
(12)
Represents stock option to acquire 130,000 shares of common stock of our company, which included
20,000 shares to be vested within 60 days.
60
ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE
Medical Related Consulting Services Revenue from Related
Parties and Accounts Receivable – Related Party
During the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, medical related consulting services
revenue from related parties was as follows:
Years Ended December 31,
2020
2019
Medical related consulting services provided to:
Beijing Daopei *
$ -
$ 54,909
Shanghai Daopei *
170,908
13,926
Hebei Daopei *
-
286,709
$ 170,908
$ 355,544
* Beijing Daopei, Shanghai Daopei, and Hebei Daopei are subsidiaries of an entity whose chairman is Wenzhao Lu, the largest shareholder of the Company.
As of December 31, 2020, accounts receivable – related
party was $0. Accounts receivable – related party at December 31, 2019 amounted to $215,418 and no allowance for doubtful
accounts is deemed to be required on accounts receivable – related party at December 31, 2019.
Accrued Liabilities and Other Payables – Related Parties
The
Company acquired Beijing Genexosome for a cash payment of $450,000. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the unpaid
acquisition consideration of $100,000, was payable to Dr. Yu Zhou, former director and former co-chief executive officer and
40% owner of Genexosome, and has been included in accrued liabilities and other payables – related parties on the
accompanying consolidated balance sheets.
As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the accrued and unpaid interest related to borrowings
from Wenzhao Lu, the Company’s largest shareholder and chairman of the Board of Directors, amounted to $167,956 and $49,194,
respectively, and have been included in accrued liabilities and other payables – related parties on the accompanying consolidated
balance sheets.
Borrowings from Related Party
Promissory Note
On March 18, 2019,
the Company issued Wenzhao Lu, the Company’s largest shareholder and Chairman of the Board of Directors, a Promissory Note
in the principal amount of $1,000,000 (“Promissory Note”) in consideration of cash in the amount of $1,000,000. The
Promissory Note accrues interest at the rate of 5% per annum and matures March 19, 2022. The Company repaid principal of $410,000
and $200,000 in the third quarter of 2019 and second quarter of 2020, respectively. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the
outstanding principal balance was $390,000 and $590,000, respectively.
Line of Credit
On August 29, 2019, the Company entered into a Line of Credit Agreement (the
“Line of Credit Agreement”) providing the Company with a $20 million line of credit (the “Line of Credit”)
from Wenzhao Lu (the “Lender”), the largest shareholder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company. The
Line of Credit allows the Company to request loans thereunder and to use the proceeds of such loans for working capital and operating
expense purposes until the facility matures on December 31, 2024. The loans are unsecured and are not convertible into equity
of the Company. Loans drawn under the Line of Credit bears interest at an annual rate of 5% and each individual loan will be payable
three years from the date of issuance. The Company has a right to draw down on the line of credit and not at the discretion of
the related party Lender. The Company may, at its option, prepay any borrowings under the Line of Credit, in whole or in part
at any time prior to maturity, without premium or penalty. The Line of Credit Agreement includes customary events of default.
If any such event of default occurs, the Lender may declare all outstanding loans under the Line of Credit to be due and
payable immediately. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, $3,200,000 and $2,600,000 was outstanding under the Line of Credit,
respectively.
For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, the interest expense related to
above borrowings amounted to $168,762 and $49,194, respectively, and has been included in interest expense – related party
on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss.
As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the related accrued
and unpaid interest for above borrowings was $167,956 and $49,194, respectively, and has been included in accrued liabilities
and other payables – related parties on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.
61
Common Shares Sold to Related Party
On April 1, 2020, the Company sold 645,161 shares of its common stock to WLM Limited
(“WLM”), an entity owned by Wenzhao Lu, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company, at a price per share of
$1.55 for an aggregate purchase price of $1,000,000 (See Note 11 – Common Shares Sold for Cash).
Office Space from Related Party
Beijing Genexosome uses office space of a related party,
free of rent, which is considered immaterial.
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Marcum LLP served as our independent auditors for the years
ended December 31, 2020 and 2019.
Aggregate fees billed to the Company for professional services
rendered by Marcum LLP during the last two fiscal years were as follows:
December 31,
2020
December 31,
2019
Audit Fees
$ 252,144
$ 186,669
Audit Related Fees
-
-
Tax Fees
15,450
2,575
All Other Fees
-
-
Totals
$ 267,594
$ 189,244
AUDIT FEES. Consists of fees billed for professional
services rendered for the audit of our annual consolidated financial statements, review of the Form 10-K, and review of the interim
consolidated financial statements included in quarterly reports, and services that are normally provided by our independent auditors
in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements, including registration statements.
AUDIT-RELATED FEES. Consists of fees billed for assurance and
related services that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit and or review of our consolidated financial statements
and are not reported under “Audit Fees”, such as audits and reviews in connection with acquisitions.
TAX FEES. Consists of fees billed for professional services
for tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning.
ALL OTHER FEES. Consists of fees for products and services other
than the services reported above. There were no management consulting services provided in fiscal 2020 or 2019.
POLICY ON AUDIT COMMITTEE PRE-APPROVAL OF AUDIT AND PERMISSIBLE
NON-AUDIT SERVICES OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
The current policy of the directors, acting as the audit committee,
is to approve the appointment of the principal auditing firm and any permissible audit-related services. The audit and audit related
fees include fees for the annual audit of the financial statements and review of financial statements included in 10Q filings.
Fees charged by the auditor were approved by the Board with engagement letters signed by the audit committee chairman.
The Audit Committee is responsible for the pre-approval of audit
and permitted non-audit services to be performed by the Company’s independent auditor. The Audit Committee will, on an annual
basis, consider and, if appropriate, approve the provision of audit and non-audit services by the auditor. Thereafter, the Audit
Committee will, as necessary, consider and, if appropriate, approve the provision of additional audit and non-audit services by
the auditor which are not encompassed by the Audit Committee’s annual pre-approval and are not prohibited by law. The Audit
Committee has delegated to the Chair of the Audit Committee the authority to pre-approve, on a case-by-case basis, non-audit services
to be performed by the auditor. The Audit Committee has approved all audit and permitted non-audit services performed by the auditor
for the year ended December 31, 2020.
62
PART IV
ITEM 15. EXHIBITS
Exhibit
Number
Description
1.1
Open Market Sale Agreement SM , dated as of December 13, 2019, by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Jefferies LLC. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 13, 2019)
3.1
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 26, 2018)
3.2
Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 26, 2018)
4.1
Form of Subscription Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and the December 2016 Accredited Investors (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 21, 2016)
4.2 †
Stock Option issued to Luisa Ingargiola dated February 21, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 21, 2017)
4.3
Form of Subscription Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and the March 2017 Accredited Investor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 7, 2017)
4.4
Share Subscription Agreement between Avalon GloboCare Corp., Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing DOING Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd. and Daron Liang (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 7, 2017)
4.5
Warranty Agreement between Lu Wenzhao and Beijing DOING Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 7, 2017)
4.6
Form of Subscription Agreement between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and the October 2017 Accredited Investors (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
4.7
Form of Warrant to Boustead Securities, LLC in connection with the private placements (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.8 of the Registration Statement on Form S-1/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 27, 2018)
4.8
Form of Warrant (April 2019) (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 26, 2019)
4.9*
Description of Securities Registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
10.1
Share Exchange Agreement dated as of October 19, 2016 by and among Avalon Healthcare System, Inc., the shareholders of Avalon Healthcare System, Inc. and Avalon GloboCare Corp. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 19, 2016)
10.2 †
Executive Employment Agreement, effective December 1, 2016, by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and David Jin (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 2, 2016)
10.3
Agreement of Sale by and between Freehold Craig Road Partnership, as Seller, and Avalon GloboCare Corp., as Buyer dated as of December 22, 2016 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 23, 2016)
10.4 †
Executive Employment Agreement by and between Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Ltd. and Meng Li dated January 11, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 11, 2017)
63
10.5 †
Executive Retention Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Luisa Ingargiola dated February 21, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 21, 2017)
10.6 †
Indemnification Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Luisa Ingargiola dated February 21, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 21, 2017)
10.7 †
Director Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Steven P. Sukel dated April 28, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 28, 2017)
10.8 †
Director Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Yancen Lu dated April 28, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 28, 2017)
10.9
Consultation Service Contract between Daopei Investment Management (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. and Avalon HealthCare System Inc. dated April 1, 2016 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.8 of Amendment No. 1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 7, 2017)
10.10
Consultation Service Contract between Hebei Yanda Ludaopei Hospital Co., Ltd and Avalon HealthCare System Inc. dated April 1, 2016 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 of Amendment No. 1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 7, 2017)
10.11
Consultation Service Contract between Nanshan Memorial Stem Cell Biotechnology Co., Ltd. and Avalon HealthCare System Inc. dated April 1, 2016 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.10 of Amendment No. 1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 7, 2017)
10.12
Loan Agreement between Lotus Capital Overseas Limited and Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd. dated April 19, 2017 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.12 of the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 14, 2017)
10.13
Securities Purchase Agreement between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Genexosome Technologies Inc. dated October 25, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
10.14
Asset Purchase Agreement between Genexosome Technologies Inc. and Yu Zhou dated October 25, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
10.15
Stock Purchase Agreement between Genexosome Technologies Inc., Beijing Jieteng (Genexosome) Biotech Co. Ltd. and Yu Zhou dated October 25, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
10.16 †
Executive Retention Agreement between Genexosome Technologies Inc. and Yu Zhou dated October 25, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
10.17
Invention Assignment, Confidentiality, Non-Compete and Non-Solicit Agreement between Genexosome Technologies Inc. and Yu Zhou dated October 25, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2017)
10.18 †
Director Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Wilbert J. Tauzin II dated November 1, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 7, 2017)
10.19
Agreement between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Tauzin Consultants, LLC dated November 1, 2017 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 7, 2017)
10.20 †
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and David Jin dated April 3, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 4, 2018)
64
10.21 †
Letter
Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Meng Li dated April 3, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2
of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 4, 2018)
10.22
Advisory
Service Contract between Ludaopei Hematology Research Institute Co., Ltd. and Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co.,
Ltd. dated April 1, 2018 (English translation) (Incorporated by reference to that Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 19, 2018)
10.23
Form
of Subscription Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and the April 2018 Accredited Investors (incorporated by reference
to Exhibit 4.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 18, 2018)
10.24
Supplementary
Agreement Related to Share Subscription by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp., Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co.,
Ltd., Beijing DOING Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd. and Daron Liang dated April 23, 2018 (English translation) (incorporated
by reference to Exhibit 4.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April
26, 2018)
10.25
Loan
Extension Agreement between Lotus Capital Overseas Limited and Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd. dated May
3, 2018 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.18 of the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 11, 2018)
10.26 †
Director
Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Tevi Troy dated June 4, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit
10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 6, 2018)
10.27
Joint
Venture Agreement by and between Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd. and Jiangsu Unicorn Biological Technology
Co., Ltd. dated May 29, 2018 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 of the Current Report on Form
8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 6, 2018)
10.28 †
Director
Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and William Stilley, III dated July 5, 2018 (incorporated by reference
to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 10, 2018)
10.29 †
Director
Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Steven A. Sanders dated July 30, 2018 (incorporated by reference
to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 31, 2018)
10.30
Loan
Extension Agreement between Lotus Capital Overseas Limited and Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd. dated August
3, 2018 (English translation) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.30 of the Registration Statement on Form S-1/A filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 7, 2018)
10.31
Strategic Partnership Agreement between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University dated August 6, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.31 of the Registration Statement on Form S-1/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 7, 2018)
10.32
Equity Joint Venture Agreement by and between Avactis Biosciences, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avalon GloboCare Corp., and Arbele Limited for the establishment of AVAR (China) BioTherapeutics Ltd. dated October 23, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 29, 2018)
10.33
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and David Jin dated January 3, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 4, 2019)
10.34
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Luisa Ingargiola dated January 3, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 4, 2019)
10.35
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co. Ltd. and Meng Li dated January 3, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 4, 2019)
10.36
Promissory Note issued to Daniel Lu dated Mach 18, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 22, 2019)
10.37†
Director Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Meng Li dated April 5, 2019 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 8, 2019)
10.38†
Director Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Yue “Charles” Li dated April 5, 2019 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 8, 2019)
10.39
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement dated April 25, 2019 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 26, 2019)
65
10.40
Revolving Line of Credit Agreement dated as of August 29, 2019 between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Wenzhao “Daniel” Lu dated August 29, 2019 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2019)
10.41
Form of Warrant Redemption and Cancellation Agreement (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 21, 2019)
10.42
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and David Jin dated February 20, 2020 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 24, 2020)
10.43
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Meng Li dated February 20, 2020 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 24, 2020)
10.44
Letter Agreement by and between Avalon GloboCare Corp. and Luisa Ingargiola dated February 20, 2020 (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 24, 2020)
21.1
List of Subsidiaries (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 21.1 of the Registration Statement on Form S-1/A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 20, 2018)
23.1*
Consent of Independent Registered Accounting Firm
31.1*
Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act
31.2*
Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act
32.1*
Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
32.2*
Certification of Principal Financial Officer pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
101.INS*
XBRL INSTANCE DOCUMENT
101.SCH*
XBRL TAXONOMY EXTENSION SCHEMA DOCUMENT
101.CAL*
XBRL TAXONOMY EXTENSION CALCULATION LINKBASE DOCUMENT
101.DEF*
XBRL TAXONOMY EXTENSION DEFINITION LINKBASE DOCUMENT
101.LAB*
XBRL TAXONOMY EXTENSION LABEL LINKBASE DOCUMENT
101.PRE*
XBRL TAXONOMY EXTENSION PRESENTATION LINKBASE DOCUMENT
*
Filed herewith
†
Management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.
ITEM 16. FORM 10-K SUMMARY.
None.
66
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements
of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its
behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP.
Dated: March 30, 2021
By:
/s/ David Jin
Name:
David Jin
Title:
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
(Principal Executive Officer)
Dated: March 30, 2021
By:
/s/ Luisa Ingargiola
Name:
Luisa Ingargiola
Title:
Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
In accordance with
the Exchange Act, this report has been signed below by the following persons on March 30, 2021, on behalf of the registrant and
in the capacities indicated.
Signature
Title
/s/ David Jin
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
David Jin
(Principal Executive Officer)
/s/ Luisa Ingargolia
Chief Financial Officer
Luisa Ingargolia
(Principal Financial Officer)
/s/ Wenzhao Lu
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Wenzhao Lu
/s/ Meng Li
Chief Operating Officer, Secretary and Director
Meng Li
/s/ Steven A. Sanders
Director
Steven A. Sanders
/s/ Yancen Lu
Director
Yancen Lu
/s/ Wilbert J. Tauzin II
Director
Wilbert J. Tauzin II
/s/ William B. Stilley III
Director
William B. Stilley III
/s/ Tevi Troy
Director
Tevi Troy
/s/ Yue “Charles” Li
Director
Yue “Charles” Li
67
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
December 31, 2020 and 2019
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
December 31, 2020 and 2019
CONTENTS
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
F-2
Consolidated Financial Statements:
Consolidated Balance Sheets - As of December 31, 2020 and 2019
F-3
Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss - For the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and 2019
F-4
Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity - For the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and 2019
F-5
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows – For the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and 2019
F-6
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
F-7
F- 1
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING
FIRM
To
the Shareholders and Board of Directors of
Avalon
GloboCare Corp.
Opinion
on the Financial Statements
We
have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Avalon GloboCare Corp. (the “Company”) as of December
31, 2020 and 2019, the related consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss, changes in stockholders’ equity
and cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes (collectively referred to
as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects,
the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for
each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America.
Explanatory
Paragraph – Going Concern
The
accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern.
As more fully described in Note 2, the Company has a significant working capital deficiency, has incurred significant losses and
needs to raise additional funds to meet its obligations and sustain its operations. These conditions raise substantial doubt about
the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. Management's plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note
2. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Basis
for Opinion
These
financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company's
financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight
Board (United States) ("PCAOB") and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the
U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We
conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits
to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error
or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial
reporting. As part of our audits, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but
not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting.
Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our
audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to
error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence
regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles
used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.
We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Critical
Audit Matters
Critical
Audit Matters are matters arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that were communicated or required
to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relate to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements
and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. We determined that there are no critical audit
matters.
/s/
Marcum llp
Marcum
llp
We
have served as the Company’s auditor since 2019.
New
York, NY
March 30, 2021
F- 2
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
December 31,
2020
2019
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS:
Cash
$ 726,577
$ 764,891
Accounts receivable
-
4,710
Accounts receivable - related party
-
215,418
Rent receivable
35,395
23,759
Deferred financing costs
222,141
311,177
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
302,224
251,140
Total Current Assets
1,286,337
1,571,095
NON-CURRENT ASSETS:
Rent receivable - noncurrent portion
111,840
99,235
Deferred leasing costs
144,197
-
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net
137,333
-
Property and equipment, net
479,115
601,425
Investment in real estate, net
7,685,686
7,735,680
Equity method investment
521,758
483,101
Total Non-current Assets
9,079,929
8,919,441
Total Assets
$ 10,366,266
$ 10,490,536
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES:
Accrued professional fees
$ 1,212,822
$ 1,243,190
Accrued research and development fees
513,533
650,000
Accrued payroll liability and directors’ compensation
154,292
488,083
Accrued liabilities and other payables
297,777
226,759
Accrued liabilities and other payables - related parties
267,956
149,194
Operating lease obligation
76,379
-
Tenants’ security deposit
69,634
78,237
Total Current Liabilities
2,592,393
2,835,463
NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES:
Operating lease obligation - noncurrent portion
66,954
-
Note payable - related party
390,000
590,000
Loan payable - related party
3,200,000
2,600,000
Total Non-current Liabilities
3,656,954
3,190,000
Total Liabilities
6,249,347
6,025,463
Commitments and Contingencies - (Note 17)
EQUITY:
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 10,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2020 and 2019
-
-
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 490,000,000 shares authorized; 82,795,297 shares issued and 82,275,297 shares outstanding at December 31, 2020; 76,730,802 shares issued and 76,210,802 shares outstanding at December 31, 2019
8,279
7,673
Additional paid-in capital
46,856,447
34,593,006
Less: common stock held in treasury, at cost; 520,000 shares at December 31, 2020 and 2019
(522,500 )
(522,500 )
Accumulated deficit
(42,041,375 )
(29,361,937 )
Statutory reserve
6,578
6,578
Accumulated other comprehensive loss - foreign currency translation adjustment
(190,510 )
(257,747 )
Total Avalon GloboCare Corp. stockholders’ equity
4,116,919
4,465,073
Non-controlling interest
-
-
Total Equity
4,116,919
4,465,073
Total Liabilities and Equity
$ 10,366,266
$ 10,490,536
See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial
statements.
F- 3
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE
LOSS
For
the Years Ended December 31,
2020
2019
REVENUES
Real property rental
$ 1,206,854
$ 1,155,677
Medical related consulting services - related parties
170,908
355,544
Development services and sales of developed products
-
35,084
Total Revenues
1,377,762
1,546,305
COSTS AND EXPENSES
Real property operating expenses
851,754
818,662
Medical related consulting services - related parties
135,805
284,472
Development services and sales of developed products
-
103,258
Total Costs and Expenses
987,559
1,206,392
REAL PROPERTY OPERATING INCOME
355,100
337,015
GROSS PROFIT FROM MEDICAL RELATED CONSULTING SERVICES
35,103
71,072
GROSS LOSS FROM DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND SALES OF DEVELOPED PRODUCTS
-
(68,174 )
Total Gross Profit
390,203
339,913
OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES:
Professional fees
6,553,009
5,994,129
Compensation and related benefits
4,156,150
8,743,691
Research and development expenses
883,855
1,781,869
Other general and administrative
1,251,208
2,187,443
Impairment loss
-
1,010,011
Total Other Operating Expenses
12,844,222
19,717,143
LOSS FROM OPERATIONS
(12,454,019 )
(19,377,230 )
OTHER (EXPENSE) INCOME
Interest expense
-
(33,714 )
Interest expense - related party
(168,762 )
(49,194 )
Change in fair value of warrants liabilities
-
2,817,241
Financing expense
-
(525,418 )
Loss from equity method investment
(51,673 )
(55,776 )
Loss from noncontrolling interest deficit adjustment
-
(862,200 )
Other (expense) income
(4,984 )
16,130
Total Other (Expense) Income, net
(225,419 )
1,307,069
LOSS BEFORE INCOME TAXES
(12,679,438 )
(18,070,161 )
INCOME TAXES
-
-
NET LOSS
$ (12,679,438 )
$ (18,070,161 )
LESS: NET LOSS ATTRIBUTABLE TO NON-CONTROLLING INTEREST
-
-
NET LOSS ATTRIBUTABLE TO AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. COMMON SHAREHOLDERS
$ (12,679,438 )
$ (18,070,161 )
COMPREHENSIVE LOSS:
NET LOSS
$ (12,679,438 )
$ (18,070,161 )
OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
Unrealized foreign currency translation gain (loss)
67,237
(20,887 )
COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(12,612,201 )
(18,091,048 )
LESS: COMPREHENSIVE LOSS ATTRIBUTABLE TO NON-CONTROLLING INTEREST
-
-
COMPREHENSIVE LOSS ATTRIBUTABLE TO AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. COMMON SHAREHOLDERS
$ (12,612,201 )
$ (18,091,048 )
NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE ATTRIBUTABLE TO AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. COMMON SHAREHOLDERS:
Basic and diluted
$ (0.16 )
$ (0.24 )
WEIGHTED AVERAGE COMMON SHARES OUTSTANDING:
Basic and diluted
79,508,149
75,116,895
See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial
statements.
F- 4
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY
For the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and 2019
Avalon GloboCare Corp. Stockholders’ Equity
Preferred Stock
Common Stock
Additional
Treasury Stock
Accumulated Other
Non-
Number of
Number of
Paid-in
Number of
Accumulated
Statutory
Comprehensive
controlling
Total
Shares
Amount
Shares
Amount
Capital
Shares
Amount
Deficit
Reserve
Loss
Interest
Equity
Balance, January 1, 2019
-
$ -
73,830,751
$ 7,383
$ 24,153,378
(520,000 )
$ (522,500 )
$ (11,291,776 )
$ 6,578
$ (236,860 )
$ (862,200 )
$ 11,254,003
Noncontrolling interest deficit adjustment
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
862,200
862,200
Issuance of common stock upon cashless exercise of stock warrants
-
-
350,856
35
(35 )
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Issuance of common stock upon cashless exercise of stock options
-
-
158,932
16
(16 )
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Sale of common stock, net
-
-
1,852,883
185
1,672,903
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,673,088
Issuance of common stock for services
-
-
537,380
54
1,318,546
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,318,600
Stock-based compensation
-
-
-
-
7,448,230
-
-
-
-
-
-
7,448,230
Foreign currency translation adjustment
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
(20,887 )
-
(20,887 )
Net loss for the year
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
(18,070,161 )
-
-
-
(18,070,161 )
Balance, December 31, 2019
-
-
76,730,802
7,673
34,593,006
(520,000 )
(522,500 )
(29,361,937 )
6,578
(257,747 )
-
4,465,073
Sale of common stock, net
-
-
4,558,574
456
7,405,019
-
-
-
-
-
-
7,405,475
Issuance of common stock for services
-
-
1,505,921
150
1,892,370
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,892,520
Stock-based compensation
-
-
-
-
2,966,052
-
-
-
-
-
-
2,966,052
Foreign currency translation adjustment
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
67,237
-
67,237
Net loss for the year
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
(12,679,438 )
-
-
-
(12,679,438 )
Balance, December 31, 2020
-
$ -
82,795,297
$ 8,279
$ 46,856,447
(520,000 )
$ (522,500 )
$ (42,041,375 )
$ 6,578
$ (190,510 )
$ -
$ 4,116,919
See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial
statements.
F- 5
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
For the Years Ended December 31,
2020
2019
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES:
Net loss
$ (12,679,438 )
$ (18,070,161 )
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in
operating activities:
Bad debt provision
55,133
-
Depreciation and amortization
314,780
506,744
Amortization of straight-line rent receivable
7,554
-
Amortization of use-of-right asset
63,695
-
Stock-based compensation and service expense
5,494,033
9,209,147
Loss from equity method investment
51,673
55,776
Loss on fixed assets disposal
2,679
344
Changes in warrants derivative liabilities
-
(2,817,241 )
Allocated financing costs
-
525,418
Impairment loss
-
1,010,011
Loss from noncontrolling interest deficit adjustment
-
862,200
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable
-
4,948
Accounts receivable - related party
217,394
(217,080 )
Rent receivable
(82,174 )
(80,510 )
Prepaid expenses - related parties
-
34,043
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
(206,632 )
480,460
Security deposit
-
102,102
Accrued liabilities and other payables
(837,261 )
1,230,029
Accrued liabilities and other payables - related parties
118,762
72,362
Operating lease obligation
(57,695 )
-
Tenants’ security deposit
(8,603 )
11,537
NET CASH USED IN OPERATING ACTIVITIES
(7,546,100 )
(7,079,871 )
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Purchase of property and equipment
-
(377,454 )
Improvement of commercial real estate
(111,213 )
(16,321 )
Additional investment in equity method investment
(57,972 )
(159,192 )
NET CASH USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES
(169,185 )
(552,967 )
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Proceeds received from note payable - related party
-
1,000,000
Repayments of note payable - related party
(200,000 )
(410,000 )
Proceeds received from loan payable - related party
600,000
2,600,000
Repurchase of warrants
-
(1,400,000 )
Proceeds received from offering
7,804,099
6,273,744
Disbursements for offering costs
(539,818 )
(908,834 )
Repayments of loan payable
-
(1,000,000 )
NET CASH PROVIDED BY FINANCING ACTIVITIES
7,664,281
6,154,910
EFFECT OF EXCHANGE RATE ON CASH
12,690
(9,468 )
NET DECREASE IN CASH
(38,314 )
(1,487,396 )
CASH - beginning of year
764,891
2,252,287
CASH - end of year
$ 726,577
$ 764,891
SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION:
Cash paid for:
Interest
$ 50,000
$ 109,056
NON-CASH INVESTING AND FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Property and equipment acquired on credit as payable
$ -
$ 80,190
Common stock issued for future services
$ 34,629
$ 124,583
Common stock issued for accrued liabilities
$ 187,725
$ 116,575
See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.
F- 6
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 1 – ORGANIZATION AND NATURE
OF OPERATIONS
Avalon GloboCare Corp. (the “Company”
or “AVCO”) is a Delaware corporation. The Company was incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware on July
28, 2014. On October 19, 2016, the Company entered into and closed a Share Exchange Agreement with the shareholders of Avalon Healthcare
System, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“AHS”), each of which were accredited investors (“AHS Shareholders”)
pursuant to which we acquired 100% of the outstanding securities of AHS in exchange for 50,000,000 shares of the Company’s
common stock (the “AHS Acquisition”). AHS was incorporated on May 18, 2015 under the laws of the State of Delaware.
For accounting purposes, AHS was the surviving
entity. The transaction was accounted for as a recapitalization of AHS pursuant to which AHS was treated as the accounting acquirer,
surviving and continuing entity although the Company is the legal acquirer. The Company did not recognize goodwill or any intangible
assets in connection with this transaction. Accordingly, the Company’s historical financial statements are those of AHS and
its wholly-owned subsidiary, Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co., Ltd. (“Avalon Shanghai”) immediately following
the consummation of this reverse merger transaction. AHS owns 100% of the capital stock of Avalon Shanghai, which is a wholly foreign-owned
enterprise organized under the laws of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). Avalon Shanghai was incorporated
on April 29, 2016 and is engaged in medical related consulting services for customers.
The Company is a
clinical-stage, vertically integrated, leading CellTech bio-developer dedicated to advancing and empowering innovative, transformative
immune effector cell therapy, exosome technology, as well as COVID-19 related diagnostics and therapeutics. The Company also provides
strategic advisory and outsourcing services to facilitate and enhance its clients’ growth and development, as well as competitiveness
in healthcare and CellTech industry markets. Through its subsidiary structure with unique integration of verticals from innovative
R&D to automated bioproduction and accelerated clinical development, the Company is establishing a leading role in the fields
of cellular immunotherapy (including CAR-T/NK), exosome technology (ACTEX™), and regenerative therapeutics.
On January 23, 2017, the Company incorporated
Avalon (BVI) Ltd., a British Virgin Island company. There was no activity for the subsidiary since its incorporation through December
31, 2020. Avalon (BVI) Ltd. is dormant and is in process of being dissolved.
On February 7, 2017, the Company formed Avalon
RT 9 Properties, LLC (“Avalon RT 9”), a New Jersey limited liability company. On May 5, 2017, Avalon RT 9 purchased
a real property located in Township of Freehold, County of Monmouth, State of New Jersey, having a street address of 4400 Route
9 South, Freehold, NJ 07728. This property was purchased to serve as the Company’s world-wide headquarters for all corporate
administration and operations. In addition, the property generates rental income. Avalon RT 9 owns this office building. Currently,
Avalon RT 9’s business consists of the ownership and operation of the income-producing real estate property in New Jersey.
Currently, the occupancy rate of the building is 83.7%.
On July 31, 2017, the Company formed Genexosome
Technologies Inc. (“Genexosome”) in Nevada. Genexosome is engaged in developing proprietary diagnostic and therapeutic
products using exosomes. Effective October 25, 2017, Genexosome owns 100% of the capital stock of Beijing Jieteng (Genexosome)
Biotech Co., Ltd., a corporation incorporated in the People’s Republic of China on August 7, 2015 (“Beijing Genexosome”),
and the Company holds 60% of Genexosome and Dr. Yu Zhou holds 40% of Genexosome. Beijing Genexosome is engaged in providing development
services and selling developed items to customers in China.
On July 18, 2018, the Company formed a wholly
owned subsidiary, Avactis Biosciences Inc., a Nevada corporation, which will focus on accelerating commercial activities related
to cellular therapies, including regenerative medicine with stem/progenitor cells as well as cellular immunotherapy including CAR-T,
CAR-NK, TCR-T and others. The subsidiary is designed to integrate and optimize our global scientific and clinical resources to
further advance the use of cellular therapies to treat certain cancers.
On June 13, 2019, the Company formed a wholly
owned subsidiary, International Exosome Association LLC, a Delaware company. There was no activity for the subsidiary since its
incorporation through December 31, 2020.
F- 7
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 1 – ORGANIZATION AND NATURE
OF OPERATIONS (continued)
Details of the Company’s subsidiaries
which are included in these consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2020 are as follows:
Name
of Subsidiary
Place
and date of
Incorporation
Percentage of
Ownership
Principal
Activities
Avalon Healthcare System, Inc.
(“AHS”)
Delaware
May 18, 2015
100% held by AVCO
Provides medical related consulting services and developing Avalon Cell and Avalon Rehab in United States of America (“USA”)
Avalon (BVI) Ltd.
(“Avalon BVI”)
British Virgin Island
January 23, 2017
100% held by AVCO
Dormant, is in process of being dissolved
Avalon RT 9 Properties LLC
(“Avalon RT 9”)
New Jersey
February 7, 2017
100% held by AVCO
Owns and operates an income-producing real property and holds and manages the corporate headquarters
Avalon (Shanghai) Healthcare Technology Co.,
Ltd.
(“Avalon Shanghai”)
PRC
April 29, 2016
100% held by AHS
Provides medical related consulting services and developing Avalon Cell and Avalon Rehab in China
Genexosome Technologies Inc.
(“Genexosome”)
Nevada
July 31, 2017
60% held by AVCO
Develops proprietary diagnostic and therapeutic products using exosomes
Beijing Jieteng (Genexosome) Biotech Co., Ltd.
(“Beijing Genexosome”)
PRC
August 7, 2015
100% held by Genexosome
Provides development services for hospitals and other customers and sells developed items to hospitals and other customers in China
Avactis Biosciences Inc.
(“Avactis”)
Nevada
July 18, 2018
100% held by AVCO
Integrate and optimize global scientific and clinical resources to further advance cellular therapies, including regenerative medicine with stem/progenitor cells as well as cellular immunotherapy including CAR-T, CAR-NK, TCR-T and others to treat certain cancers
International Exosome Association LLC
(“Exosome”)
Delaware
June 13, 2019
100% held by AVCO
Promotes standardization related to exosome industry
NOTE
2 – BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND GOING CONCERN CONDITION
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying consolidated financial statements
and related notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America
(“U.S. GAAP”) and with the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for financial information.
The Company’s consolidated financial
statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have
been eliminated in consolidation.
F- 8
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE
2 – BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND GOING CONCERN CONDITION (continued)
Going Concern
The Company is a
clinical-stage, vertically integrated, leading CellTech bio-developer dedicated to advancing and empowering innovative, transformative
immune effector cell therapy, exosome technology, as well as COVID-19 related diagnostics and therapeutics. The Company also provides
strategic advisory and outsourcing services to facilitate and enhance its clients’ growth and development, as well as competitiveness
in healthcare and CellTech industry markets. Through its subsidiary structure with unique integration of verticals from innovative
R&D to automated bioproduction and accelerated clinical development, the Company is establishing a leading role in the fields
of cellular immunotherapy (including CAR-T/NK), exosome technology (ACTEX™), and regenerative therapeutics.
In addition, the Company owns commercial real
estate that houses its headquarters in Freehold, New Jersey and provides outsourced, customized
international healthcare services to the rapidly changing health care industry primarily focused in the People’s Republic
of China. The Company did not generate any revenue from development services and sales of developed products segment during
the year ended December 31, 2020. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue
as a going concern, which contemplates, among other things, the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities in the
normal course of business.
As reflected in the accompanying consolidated
financial statements, the Company has incurred recurring net
loss and generated negative cash flow from operating activities of $12,679,438 and $7,546,100 for the year ended December 31, 2020,
respectively. The Company has a limited operating history and its continued growth is dependent upon the continuation of providing
medical consulting services to its only few clients who are related parties and generating rental revenue from its income-producing
real estate property in New Jersey and performing development services for hospitals and other customers and sales of developed
products to hospitals and other customers; hence generating revenues, and obtaining additional financing to fund future obligations
and pay liabilities arising from normal business operations. In addition, the current cash balance cannot be projected to cover
the operating expenses for the next twelve months from the release date of this report. These matters raise substantial doubt about
the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent
on the Company’s ability to raise additional capital, implement its business plan, and generate significant revenues. There
are no assurances that the Company will be successful in its efforts to generate significant revenues, maintain sufficient cash
balance or report profitable operations or to continue as a going concern. The Company plans on raising capital through the sale
of equity to implement its business plan. However, there is no assurance these plans will be realized and that any additional financings
will be available to the Company on satisfactory terms and conditions, if any.
The occurrence of an uncontrollable event
such as the COVID-19 pandemic had negatively impact on the Company’s operations. Some tenants have delayed on rent payment
and our occupancy of our rental property has decreased in 2020. Most tenants are paid up to date and our occupancy has increased
from 83.7% to 89.4% in subsequent period. Our general development operations have continued during the COVID-19 pandemic and we
have not had significant disruption. However, we are uncertain if the COVID-19 pandemic will impact future operations at our laboratory,
or our ability to collaborate with other laboratories and universities. In addition, we are unsure if the COVID-19 pandemic will
impact future clinical trials. Given the dynamic nature of these circumstances, the duration of business disruption and reduced
traffic, the related financial effect cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is expected to adversely impact the Company’s
business for the year of 2021.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements
do not include any adjustments related to the recoverability or classification of asset-carrying amounts or the amounts and classification
of liabilities that may result should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.
NOTE 3 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT
ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Use of Estimates
The preparation
of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions
that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of
the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could
differ from these estimates. Significant estimates during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 include the useful life
of property and equipment and investment in real estate, assumptions used in assessing impairment of long-term assets,
valuation of deferred tax assets and the associated valuation allowances, and valuation of stock-based compensation.
F- 9
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 3 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT
ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
and Fair Value Measurements
The
Company adopted the guidance of Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 820 for fair value measurements which clarifies
the definition of fair value, prescribes methods for measuring fair value, and establishes a fair value hierarchy to classify the
inputs used in measuring fair value as follows :
● Level 1-Inputs are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets
for identical assets or liabilities available at the measurement date.
● Level 2-Inputs are unadjusted quoted prices for similar assets
and liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar assets and liabilities in markets that are not active,
inputs other than quoted prices that are observable, and inputs derived from or corroborated by observable market data.
● Level 3-Inputs are unobservable inputs which reflect the
reporting entity’s own assumptions on what assumptions the market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability
based on the best available information.
Assets and liabilities
measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis. Certain assets and liabilities are measured at fair value on a nonrecurring
basis. These assets and liabilities are not measured at fair value on an ongoing basis, but are subject to fair value adjustments
in certain circumstances. These assets and liabilities can include intangible assets that are written down to fair value when they
are impaired.
Intangible assets.
The factors used to determine fair value are subject to management’s judgment and expertise and include, but are not
limited to, lower sales of the product than anticipated and future ability to use the product. These assumptions represent Level
3 inputs. Impairment of intangible assets for the year ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 was $0 and $1,010,011, respectively.
Assets and liabilities
measured at fair value on a recurring basis. Certain assets and liabilities are measured at fair value on a recurring basis.
These assets and liabilities are measured at fair value on an ongoing basis. These assets and liabilities include derivative liabilities.
Derivative
liabilities. Derivative liabilities are carried at fair value and measured on an ongoing basis. The Company did not have derivative
liabilities in the year ended December 31, 2020. The table below reflects the activity of derivative liabilities measured at fair
value for the year ended December 31, 2019:
Significant Unobservable
Inputs
(Level 3)
Balance of derivative liabilities as of January 1, 2019
$ -
Initial fair value of derivative liabilities attributable to warrants issuance with fund raise
4,217,241
Gain from change in the fair value of derivative liabilities
(2,817,241 )
Warrants were redeemed and cancelled
(1,400,000 )
Balance of derivative liabilities as of December 31, 2019
$ -
The carrying amounts reported in the consolidated balance sheets
for cash, rent receivable, accrued liabilities and other payables, accrued liabilities and other payables – related parties,
operating lease obligation, tenants’ security deposit, approximate their fair market value as of December 31, 2020 and 2019
based on the short-term maturity of these instruments.
ASC 825-10 “Financial Instruments”,
allows entities to voluntarily choose to measure certain financial assets and liabilities at fair value (fair value option). The
fair value option may be elected on an instrument-by-instrument basis and is irrevocable, unless a new election date occurs. If
the fair value option is elected for an instrument, unrealized gains and losses for that instrument should be reported in earnings
at each subsequent reporting date. The Company did not elect to apply the fair value option to any outstanding instruments.
F- 10
AVALON GLOBOCARE CORP. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 3 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT
ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)
Cash and
Cash Equivalents
At December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Company’s
cash balances by geographic area were as follows:
Country:
December 31,
2020
December 31,
2019
United States
$ 559,711
77.0 %
$ 371,929
48.6 %
China
166,866
23.0 %
392,962
51.4 %
Total cash
$ 726,577
100.0 %
$ 764,891
100.0 %
For purposes
of the consolidated statements of cash flows, the Company considers all highly liquid instruments with a maturity of three months
or less when purchased and money market accounts to be cash equivalents. The Company had no cash equivalents at December 31, 2020
and 2019.
Credit Risk and Uncertainties
A portion of the Company’s cash is maintained
with state-owned banks within the PRC. Balances at state-owned banks within the PRC are covered by insurance up to RMB 500,000
(approximately $77,000) per bank. Any balance over RMB 500,000 per bank in PRC will not be covered. At December 31, 2020, cash
balances held in the PRC are RMB 1,089,733 (approximately $167,000), of which, RMB 563,458 (approximately $86,000) was not covered
by such limited insurance. The Company has not experienced any losses in such
Text extracted from the filing as submitted to EDGAR. Formatting, tables and exhibits are simplified for reading; the original document is authoritative for anything you rely on.