Item 3. Legal Proceedings
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
On November 12, 2022, the Company entered into a Settlement Agreement and Asset Purchase Agreement (APA) with Relief Therapeutics Holding AG and Relief Therapeutics International (the “Relief Parties”) to settle the outstanding lawsuit with respect to the Binding Collaboration Agreement dated September 18, 2020 between the Company and the Relief Parties (the “Collaboration Agreement”). The closing under the APA occurred on December 17, 2022 and the parties dismissed their respective claims against each other.
On August 12, 2022, the Company received a demand for arbitration (the “Demand”) from GEM Yield Bahamas Limited and GEM Global Yield LLC SCS (collectively, “GEM”). The Demand claims that the Company’s subsidiary, NeuroRx, failed to satisfy its obligation to pay GEM a commitment fee in the amount of HK$ 15,000,000 (approximately US$1,914,087 at current exchange rates) pursuant to a Share Subscription Facility Agreement, executed on October 18, 2019, by and among NeuroRx and GEM (the “Agreement”).
On July 17, 2023, the Company and GEM entered into a settlement and release agreement (the “Settlement Agreement”) pursuant to which the parties agreed to dismiss the arbitration proceeding with prejudice. Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement on August 31, 2023, the Company issued 67,568 shares of common stock to GEM in full satisfaction of the Settlement Agreement for the approximately $0.3 million which was previously accrued and expensed as “Settlement expense.” The shares are registered under a prospectus supplement to the Company’s registration statement on Form S-3 and are subject to a restriction that they cannot be sold or traded for a period of six months from the effective date of the Settlement Agreement.
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The Company was a defendant in litigation filed by Streeterville Capital, LLC (Streeterville) in the Third Judicial District Court of Salt Lake County, Utah. The Complaint sought, among other things: (i) declaratory relief for an order enjoining the Company from undertaking any Fundamental Transaction, including the Spin-Off, or otherwise issuing common stock or other equity securities (such as the shares of HOPE pursuant to the announced Spin-Off); and (ii) repayment of the Streeterville Note and other unspecified amounts of damages, costs and fees, but no less than $6,537,027, or the amounts currently outstanding under the Streeterville Note. On July 29, 2024, in connection with the alleged Event of Default that Streeterville claimed occurred with respect to the Streeterville Note, the Company announced an order of the Utah arbitrator denying the petition of Streeterville to enjoin the planned Spin-Off of 49% of shares in HOPE to current shareholders of the Company. The purpose of the proposed Spin-Off was to provide the Company’s shareholders with valuable consideration and to provide HOPE (currently a wholly-owned subsidiary) with a sufficient shareholder base to enable future listing on a national exchange. The arbitrator also denied Streeterville’s petition to enjoin the Company from selling additional shares of common stock to finance ongoing operations.
On August 12, 2024, the Company and Streeterville entered into a Settlement and Release of Claims (the “Settlement Agreement”), whereby the Company and Streeterville agreed to settle all disputes between the parties and release the Company from all obligations arising from the Notes at certain Securities Purchase Agreement, dated November 4, 2022 (“Streeterville Notes”), between the Company and Streeterville, and that certain Convertible Promissory Note, dated November 4, 2022, issued to Streeterville by the Company, in exchange for a payment of $2.5 million upon the initial closing of the sale of the Anson Notes, and within 60 days thereafter, a second payment of $3.05 million. The Company made the $2.5 million payment upon the Anson Notes closing on August 15, 2024. The Company made the $3.05 million payment in October 2024 in satisfaction of the Streeterville Note.
On May 9, 2025, HOPE and its wholly-owned subsidiary, HTX, entered into an Asset Purchase and Contribution Agreement (the “Kadima Purchase Agreement”), with Kadima Medical, Kadima Holdings, Inc. and David Feifel, M.D., PH.D (collectively, “Kadima”), pursuant to which the Company agreed to purchase and Kadima agreed to sell, certain assets of Kadima, subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions (the “Kadima Acquisition”). As of the date of this Report, the parties have not closed the Kadima Acquisition and the matter has entered arbitration. At this stage of the arbitration, it is too early to determine if the matter would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.
In addition to the matters described above, we may become involved in various legal actions incidental to our business. As of the date of this annual report, we are not involved in any other legal proceedings that we believe could have a material adverse effect on our financial position or results of operations, but regardless of the outcome, litigation can have an adverse impact on the Company because of defense and settlement costs, and diversion of management resources.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
PART II