NovaBridge Biosciences 6-K, filed Aug 4, 2025
NovaBridge Biosciences (NBP)
About this 6-K
NovaBridge Biosciences filed this 6-K on August 4, 2025.
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16
UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the Month of August 2025
Commission File Number: 001-39173
I-MAB
2440 Research Boulevard, Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20850
(Address of registrant’s principal executive offices)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F:
Form 20-F ☒ Form 40-F ☐
UNDERWRITTEN OFFERING
On August 1, 2025, I-Mab (the “Company”) entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Leerink Partners LLC as the representative of the several underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”), in connection with the issuance and sale by the Company in an underwritten offering (the “Offering”) of 33,333,330 American depositary shares (“ADSs”), each ten (10) American depositary shares representing twenty-three (23) ordinary shares, representing, in the aggregate, 76,666,659 ordinary shares, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company at an offering price of $1.95 per ADS. Gross proceeds from the Offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses payable by the Company, are expected to be approximately $65 million.
The Offering was made pursuant to the Company’s shelf registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-286954), which was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on May 15, 2025, as supplemented by a prospectus supplement dated August 1, 2025, filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The Offering is expected to close on or about August 5, 2025, subject to customary closing conditions.
The Underwriting Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and agreements by the Company, customary conditions to closing, indemnification obligations of the Company and the Underwriters, including for liabilities under the Securities Act, and other obligations of the parties and termination provisions. The representations, warranties and covenants contained in the Underwriting Agreement were made only for purposes of such agreement and as of specific dates, were solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, and may be subject to limitations agreed upon by the contracting parties.
The foregoing description of the Underwriting Agreement is not complete, does not purport to be a complete description of the rights and obligations of the parties thereunder, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Underwriting Agreement, which is filed herewith as Exhibit 1.1 and incorporated by reference herein.
The legal opinion of Harneys Westwood & Riegels, the Company’s counsel as to Cayman Islands law, relating to the legality of the issuance and sale of the ordinary shares underlying the ADSs offered in the Offering is filed herewith as Exhibit 5.1 and incorporated by reference herein.
On August 1, 2025, the Company issued a press release announcing the Offering. The press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 hereto.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this Report on Form 6-K that are not strictly historical in nature, including statements regarding the Company’s expectations with respect to the closing of the Offering and the receipt of gross proceeds, are forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions based on current information and expectations and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in any of such statements due to various factors, including market risks and uncertainties and risks relating to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions for an offering of securities. Given these uncertainties, the reader is advised not to place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this report. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise the information in this report, including any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.
1
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
The information in this Report on 6-K, including the information contained in exhibits 1.1, 5.1, 23.1 to this Report on Form 6-K, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into the Registrant’s Registration Statements on Form F-3 (File No. 333-286954) and Form S-8 (File Nos. 333-239871, 333-265684, 333-256603, and 333-279842) and to be a part thereof from the date on which this report is filed, to the extent not superseded by documents or reports subsequently filed or furnished.
Exhibit
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| I-MAB | ||||||
| (Registrant) | ||||||
| Date: August 4, 2025 | /s/ Joseph Skelton | |||||
| Name: Joseph Skelton | ||||||
| Title: Chief Financial Officer | ||||||
Exhibit 1.1
I-Mab
(a Cayman Islands exempted company)
33,333,330 American Depositary Shares Representing an Aggregate of 76,666,659 Ordinary Shares
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
August 1, 2025
Leerink Partners LLC
as Representative of the several Underwriters
c/o Leerink Partners LLC
1301 Avenue of the Americas, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10019
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I-Mab, an exempted company incorporated with limited liability under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the “Company”), confirms its agreement with Leerink Partners LLC (“Leerink Partners”) and each of the other Underwriters named in Schedule A hereto (collectively, the “Underwriters,” which term shall also include any underwriter substituted as hereinafter provided in Section 10 hereof), for which Leerink Partners is acting as representative (in such capacity, the “Representative”), with respect to the sale by the Company and the purchase by the Underwriters, acting severally and not jointly, of the respective numbers of American Depositary Shares (the “ADSs”), each 10 ADSs representing 23 ordinary shares of a par value of $0.0001 each, of the Company (the “Ordinary Shares”) set forth in Schedule A hereto.
The aforesaid 33,333,330 ADSs to be purchased by the Underwriters are herein called the “Securities.” The Ordinary Shares represented by the ADSs to be purchased by the Underwriters are hereinafter called the “Underlying Shares.” The Underlying Shares will, following subscription by the Underwriters, be deposited pursuant to the Deposit Agreement dated as of January 22, 2020, by and among the Company, Citibank, N.A., as depositary (the “Depositary”), and the holders and beneficial owners of ADSs issued thereunder, to be supplemented by a letter agreement by and between the Company and the Depositary (as so supplemented, the “Deposit Agreement”). Each 10 ADSs will initially represent the right to receive 23 Ordinary Shares deposited pursuant to the Deposit Agreement. The parties hereto agree that to facilitate the transactions contemplated by this Underwriting Agreement (this “Agreement”), the Underwriters shall subscribe for the Underlying Shares and, upon the Underwriters becoming the owners of their respective Underlying Shares, the Representative shall deposit such Shares with the Depositary against issuance of ADSs, in accordance with the terms of the Deposit Agreement.
The Company understands that the Underwriters propose to make an offering of the Securities as soon as the Representative deems advisable after this Agreement has been executed and delivered.
The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a shelf registration statement on Form F-3 (No. 333-286954), covering the offering and sale of certain securities, including the Securities, under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”) and the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder (the “1933 Act Regulations”), which shelf
registration statement was declared effective on May 15, 2025. Such registration statement, as of any time, means such registration statement as amended by any post-effective amendments thereto at such time, including the exhibits and any schedules thereto at such time, the documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference therein (the “Incorporated Documents”) at such time pursuant to Item 6 of Form F-3 under the 1933 Act and the documents otherwise deemed to be a part thereof as of such time pursuant to Rule 430B under the 1933 Act Regulations (“Rule 430B”), is referred to herein as the “Registration Statement;” provided, however, that the “Registration Statement” without reference to a time means such registration statement as amended by any post-effective amendments thereto as of the time of the first contract of sale for the Securities, which time shall be considered the “new effective date” of such registration statement with respect to the Securities within the meaning of paragraph (f)(2) of Rule 430B, including the exhibits and schedules thereto as of such time, the documents incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference therein at such time pursuant to Item 6 of Form F-3 under the 1933 Act and the documents otherwise deemed to be a part thereof as of such time pursuant to the Rule 430B. Any registration statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) of the 1933 Act Regulations is herein called the “Rule 462(b) Registration Statement” and, after such filing, the term “Registration Statement” shall include the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement. The base prospectus filed as part of the Registration Statement in the form in which it has most recently been filed with the Commission on or prior to the date of this Agreement is herein called the “Base Prospectus.” Promptly after execution and delivery of this Agreement, the Company will prepare and file a final prospectus relating to the Securities in accordance with the provisions of Rule 424(b) under the 1933 Act Regulations (“Rule 424(b)”). The final prospectus, in the form first furnished or made available to the Underwriters for use in connection with the offering of the Securities, including the documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 6 of Form F-3 under the 1933 Act, are collectively referred to herein as the “Prospectus.” For purposes of this Agreement, all references to the Registration Statement, the ADS Registration Statements (as defined below), the Base Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include the copy filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system (or any successor system) (“EDGAR”).
As used in this Agreement:
“Applicable Time” means 6:30 A.M., New York City time, on August 1, 2025 or such other time as agreed by the Company and the Representative.
“General Disclosure Package” means the Base Prospectus, as most recently amended or supplemented prior to the Applicable Time, together with any Issuer General Use Free Writing Prospectuses issued at or prior to the Applicable Time and the information included on Schedule B-1 hereto, all considered together.
“Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” means any “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433 of the 1933 Act Regulations (“Rule 433”), including without limitation any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 of the 1933 Act Regulations (“Rule 405”)) relating to the Securities that is (i) required to be filed with the Commission by the Company, (ii) a “road show for an offering that is a written communication” within the meaning of Rule 433(d)(8)(i), whether or not required to be filed with the Commission, or (iii) exempt from filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d)(5)(i) because it contains a description of the Securities or of the offering that does not reflect the final terms, in each case in the form filed or required to be filed with the Commission or, if not required to be filed, in the form retained in the Company’s records pursuant to Rule 433(g).
2
“Issuer General Use Free Writing Prospectus” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is intended for general distribution to prospective investors (other than a “bona fide electronic road show,” as defined in Rule 433), as evidenced by its being specified in Schedule B-2 hereto.
“Issuer Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is not an Issuer General Use Free Writing Prospectus.
“Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Section 5(d) of the 1933 Act or Rule 163B under the 1933 Act.
“Written Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the 1933 Act.
All references in this Agreement to financial statements and schedules and other information which is “contained,” “included” or “stated” (or other references of like import) in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to include all such financial statements and schedules and other information incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, prior to the execution and delivery of this Agreement; and all references in this Agreement to amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to include the filing of any document under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “1934 Act”), and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder (the “1934 Act Regulations”), incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, such preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, at or after the execution and delivery of this Agreement.
SECTION 1. Representations and Warranties.
(a) Representations and Warranties by the Company. The Company represents and warrants to each Underwriter as of the date hereof, the Applicable Time, and the Closing Time (as defined below), and agrees with each Underwriter, as follows:
(i) The Company and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement meet the requirements for and comply with the conditions for the use of Form F-3 (including General Instructions I.A and I.B.1. or I.B.5., as applicable) under the 1933 Act. At the time the Registration Statement becomes effective under the 1933 Act and at the time the Company’s most-recent Annual Report on Form 20-F was filed with the Commission, the Company will meet and met, as the case may be, the then-applicable requirements for use of Form F-3 (including General Instructions I.A and I.B.5.) under the 1933 Act. The Company has not received, and has no notice from the Commission of, any notice pursuant to Rule 401(g)(1) under the 1933 Act objecting to the use of the shelf registration statement form. No stop order of the Commission preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus, or the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, has been issued, and no proceedings for such purpose are pending before or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission. Digital copies of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any such amendments or supplements to any of the foregoing and all Incorporated Documents that were filed with the Commission on or prior to the date of this Agreement have been delivered, or are available through EDGAR, to the Representative and its counsel.
3
(ii) The Company and the Depositary have prepared and filed with the Commission registration statements relating to the ADSs on Form F-6 (Nos. 333-235557 and No. 333-289158) and related prospectuses for registration under the 1933 Act of the ADSs, have filed such amendments thereto and such amended prospectuses as may have been required to the date hereof, and will file such additional amendments thereto and such amended prospectuses as may hereinafter be required. Such registration statements, as amended at the time they became effective (including by the filing of any post-effective amendments thereto), and the prospectuses included therein, as then amended are hereinafter called the “ADS Registration Statements.” The ADS Registration Statements were declared effective under the 1933 Act on January 16, 2020 and August 1, 2025, respectively, and (i) no stop order preventing or suspending the effectiveness of the ADS Registration Statements is in effect, and no proceedings for such purpose are pending before or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission, (ii) the ADS Registration Statements when they became effective complied and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act, (iii) the ADS Registration Statements, when they became effective, did not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein not misleading and (iv) all of the Securities are registered pursuant to the ADS Registration Statements.
(iii) Each of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the time it becomes effective, at each deemed effective date with respect to the Underwriters pursuant to Rule 430B(f)(2) under the 1933 Act Regulations, complied in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations. The Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, at the time each was filed with the Commission, complied in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations, and each Prospectus Supplement, Prospectus or Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (or any amendments or supplements to any of the foregoing) furnished to the Underwriters for use in connection with the offering of the Securities was or will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T. Neither the Registration Statement nor any amendment thereto, at its effective time or at the Closing Time, contained, contains or will contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading. As of the Applicable Time, none of (A) the General Disclosure Package, (B) any individual Issuer Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus, when considered together with the General Disclosure Package, nor (C) any individual Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, when considered together with the General Disclosure Package, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. Neither the Prospectus nor any amendment or supplement thereto (including any prospectus wrapper), as of its issue date, at the time of any filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) or at the Closing Time, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. No document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, at the time the Registration Statement became effective or when such document incorporated by reference was or will be filed with the Commission, as the case may be, when read together with the other information in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus contained or will contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or will omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.
4
The representations and warranties in this subsection shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto, including any prospectus wrapper) made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by any Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use therein. For purposes of this Agreement, the only information so furnished shall be the information in the first sentence of the fifth paragraph and the second sentence of the eleventh paragraph under the caption “Underwriting” contained in the Prospectus (collectively, the “Underwriter Information”).
(iv) (i) At the time of filing the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto and (ii) at the time of the execution of this Agreement (with such date being used as the determination date for purposes of this clause (ii)), the Company was not and is not an “ineligible issuer” (as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act), without taking account of any determination by the Commission pursuant to Rule 405 that it is not necessary that the Company be considered an ineligible issuer.
(v) The Company is a “foreign private issuer,” as such term is defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act.
(vi) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (if any), as of its issue date and as of the Applicable Time, did not, does not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts and/or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, including any Incorporated Document deemed to be a part thereof that has not been superseded or modified. Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433 or that was prepared by or on behalf of or used by the Company complies or will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act.
(vii) The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto in all material respects.
(viii) The Company is subject to and in compliance in all material respects with the reporting requirements of Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the 1934 Act. The ADSs are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the 1934 Act and are listed on Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”), and the Company has taken no action designed to, or reasonably likely to have the effect of, terminating the registration of the ADSs under the 1934 Act or delisting the ADSs from Nasdaq, nor has the Company received any notification that the Commission is contemplating terminating such registration or listing. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Company has not received any notification that Nasdaq is contemplating terminating its listing and is in compliance with the current listing standards of Nasdaq.
(ix) Except as disclosed in the General Disclosure Package, there is no broker, finder or other party that is entitled to receive from the Company or any of its Subsidiaries (as defined below) any brokerage or finder’s fee or other fee or commission as a result of any transactions contemplated by this Agreement.
5
(x) The Company has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as an exempted company in good standing (to the extent such concept applies) under the laws of the Cayman Islands, with full corporate power and authority to acquire, own, lease and operate its properties, and to lease the same to others, and to conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement. The Company is duly qualified to transact business as a foreign corporation and is in good standing (to the extent such concept applies) in each other jurisdiction that requires such qualification, whether by reason of the ownership or leasing of property or the conduct of business, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or in good standing would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the condition (financial or otherwise), earnings, results of operations, business, properties, operations, assets, liabilities or prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business (a “Material Adverse Effect”).
(xi) Each of the Company’s “subsidiaries” (for purposes of this Agreement, as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act) (each, a “Subsidiary” and collectively, the “Subsidiaries”) has been duly incorporated or organized, as the case may be, and is validly existing in good standing (where such concept exists) under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or organization, as applicable, and has full power and authority to acquire, own, lease and operate its properties, and to conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. Each Subsidiary is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing (where such concept exists) under the laws of each jurisdiction that requires such qualification, whether by reason of the ownership or leasing of property or the conduct of business, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or in good standing could not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect. All of the issued and outstanding share capital or other equity or ownership interests of each Subsidiary has been duly authorized and validly issued, is fully paid and nonassessable, has been issued in compliance with applicable laws of its jurisdiction of incorporation or organization and is owned by the Company, directly or through other wholly-owned Subsidiaries, free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance or adverse claim. The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity, other than the Subsidiaries listed on Exhibit 8.1 to the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the Commission. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, no Subsidiary is prohibited or restricted, directly or indirectly, from paying dividends to the Company, from making any other distribution with respect to such Subsidiary’s equity securities, from repaying to the Company or any other Subsidiary any amounts that may from time to time become due under any loans or advances to such Subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any property or assets to the Company or to any other Subsidiary.
(xii) The Company has the authorized and outstanding capitalization as set forth in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the most recent fiscal year or, if later, the Company’s report on Form 6-K under the 1934 Act containing quarterly financial information that is incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as of the dates referred to therein (subject, in each case, to the issuance of the Securities under this Agreement, the issuance of Ordinary Shares upon exercise of share options and warrants disclosed as outstanding as of the date hereof in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and the grant of options under existing share option plans described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus). The ADSs conform in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, including under the heading “Description of Share Capital and Articles of Association.” All of the issued and outstanding share capital or other equity or ownership interest of the Company (including the ADSs) has been duly authorized and
6
validly issued and is fully paid and nonassessable, has been issued in compliance with all federal, state and local securities laws and is free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance or adverse claim. None of the outstanding share capital of the Company were issued in violation of any preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or other similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities of the Company. There are no authorized or outstanding options, warrants, preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or other rights to purchase or subscribe for, or equity or debt securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for, any share capital of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries other than those described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any Incorporated Document. The descriptions of the Company’s equity incentive plan, share option plans and other share plans or arrangements described in the Prospectus and in effect as of the date hereof (collectively, the “Share Plans”) and the options or other rights granted thereunder, set forth in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus in all material respects accurately and fairly present the information required to be shown with respect to such Share Plans and the options or other rights granted thereunder.
(xiii) The Securities have been duly authorized for issuance and sale pursuant to this Agreement and, when issued and delivered by the Company against payment therefor pursuant to this Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable and will conform in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Prospectus. The Underlying Shares may be freely deposited by the Company with the Depositary or its nominee against issuance of the Securities, as contemplated by the Deposit Agreement. Upon due issuance by the Depositary of the Securities against the deposit of the Underlying Shares in respect thereof in accordance with the Deposit Agreement, such Securities will be duly and validly issued and the persons in whose names the ADSs are registered will be entitled to the rights specified therein and in the Deposit Agreement. The issuance and sale of the Securities as contemplated hereby and by the Deposit Agreement shall not be subject to any preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or other similar rights to subscribe for or purchase the Securities. When issued and delivered by the Company against payment therefor pursuant to this Agreement, the purchasers of the Securities issued and sold hereunder will acquire good, marketable and valid title to such Securities, free and clear of all pledges, liens, security interests, charges, claims or encumbrances. The issuance and sale of the Securities as contemplated hereby and by the Deposit Agreement will not cause any holder of any share capital, securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for share capital or options, warrants or other rights to purchase share capital or any other securities of the Company to have any right to acquire any preferred shares of the Company. There are no restrictions upon the voting or transfer of the ADSs under the Company’s amended and restated memorandum and articles of association or any agreement or other instrument to which the Company is a party or otherwise filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.
(xiv) There is no statute, regulation, contract, agreement or other document required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or in any Incorporated Document, or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement or any Incorporated Document which is not described or filed as required. The statements set forth or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, insofar as they purport to constitute summaries of the terms of the statutes, regulations, contracts, agreements or other documents described and filed, constitute accurate summaries of the terms thereof in all material respects. The statements set forth or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus under the headings “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences for U.S. Holders,” insofar as such statements purport to summarize matters of U.S. federal income tax laws, and “Risk Factors” “Information on the Company – Licensing and Collaboration Arrangements,” “Information on the Company – Intellectual Property,” “Financial Information – Legal Proceedings” and “Description of Share Capital and Articles of Association,”
7
insofar as such statements summarize legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings discussed therein, fairly present, to the extent required by the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations, in all material respects, such U.S. federal income tax laws, legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings, as applicable. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has sent or received any communication regarding termination of, or intent not to renew or render performance under, any of the contracts or agreements referred to or described in the Prospectus or any free writing prospectus, or referred to or described in, or filed as an exhibit to, the Registration Statement, or any Incorporated Document, and no such termination or non-renewal has been threatened by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or, to the Company’s knowledge, any other party to any such contract or agreement, which threat of termination or non-renewal has not been rescinded as of the date hereof, except for such termination that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xv) This Agreement has been duly and validly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability, including rights of indemnification, may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and other similar laws relating to or affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general principles of equity. This Agreement conforms in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(xvi) The Deposit Agreement has been duly and validly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability, including rights of indemnification, may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and other similar laws relating to or affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general principles of equity. The Deposit Agreement and the ADSs conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(xvii) The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Securities and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Prospectus, will not be an “investment company” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.
(xviii) No consent, approval, license, permit, qualification, authorization or other order or decree of, or registration or filing with, any court or other governmental, taxing or regulatory authority or agency, is required for the Company’s execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement or consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby or by the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Securities hereunder), except such as have been already obtained or made or as may be required under the 1933 Act, applicable state securities or Blue Sky laws, applicable rules of Nasdaq, or Rule 5110 of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”).
(xix) Neither the execution and delivery by the Company of, nor the performance of the Company of its obligations under, this Agreement will conflict with, result in a breach or violation of, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries pursuant to: (i) the memorandum and articles of association (as amended from time to time), certificate or articles of incorporation, charter, bylaws, limited liability company agreement, certificate or agreement of limited or general partnership or other similar organizational documents, as the case may be, of such entity, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, license, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, agreement or other
8
instrument, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which it is a party or bound or to which its property or assets is subject or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree applicable to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or any of their respective properties or assets, as applicable, except, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) above, for any such conflict, breach, violation or default that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xx) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus: (i) there has been no material adverse change, or any development that could reasonably be expected to result in a material adverse change, in the condition (financial or otherwise), earnings, results of operations, business, properties, operations, assets, liabilities or prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business; (ii) neither the Company nor its Subsidiaries has (A) incurred any material liability or obligation, indirect, direct or contingent, including without limitation any losses or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood, earthquakes, accident or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any strike, labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, that are material, individually or in the aggregate, to the Company and its Subsidiaries, considered as one entity, (B) entered into any material transactions not in the ordinary course of business or (C) issued or granted any of the Company’s share capital or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for or that represent the right to receive the Company’s share capital other than under the Share Plans; and (iii) there has not been any material decrease in the share capital or any material increase in any short-term or long-term indebtedness of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries and there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company or, except for dividends paid to the Company or another Subsidiary, by any Subsidiary on any class of shares, or any repurchase or redemption by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries of any class of shares.
(xxi) There are no persons (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X promulgated under the 1933 Act) with registration or other similar rights to have any equity or debt securities of the Company registered for sale under the Registration Statement or the ADS Registration Statements or included in the offering contemplated by this Agreement, except for such rights as have been duly waived in a writing previously furnished to the Underwriters.
(xxii) The financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, together with the related notes and schedules, present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries as of the dates indicated and the consolidated results of operations, cash flows and changes in shareholders’ equity of the Company and the Subsidiaries for the periods specified and have been prepared in compliance with the requirements of the 1933 Act and 1934 Act and in conformity with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis during the periods involved (except as otherwise noted therein). To the extent applicable, any pro forma financial statements, information or data included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus comply with the requirements of Regulation S-X of the 1933 Act, including, without limitation, Article 11 thereof, fairly present the information set forth herein, and the assumptions used in the preparation of such pro forma financial statements and data are reasonable, the pro forma adjustments used therein are appropriate to give effect to the circumstances referred to therein and the pro forma adjustments have been properly applied to the historical amounts in the compilation of those statements and data. The other financial data set forth or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement,
9
the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus is accurately and fairly presented and prepared on a basis consistent with the financial statements and books and records of the Company. There are no financial statements (historical or pro forma) that are required to be included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not included or incorporated by reference therein as required. The Company and the Subsidiaries do not have any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent (including any off-balance sheet obligations or any “variable interest entities” as that term is used in Accounting Standards Codification Paragraph 810-10-25-20), not disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. All disclosures contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that contain “non-GAAP financial measures” (as such term is defined by the rules and regulations of the Commission) comply, in all material respects, with Regulation G under the 1934 Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K under the 1933 Act, to the extent applicable. The statistical, industry-related and market-related data included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus were obtained or derived from sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate, such data agree with the sources from which they are derived, and the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from such sources to the extent required. To the Company’s knowledge, no person who has been suspended or barred from being associated with a registered public accounting firm, or who has failed to comply with any sanction pursuant to Rule 5300 promulgated by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”), has participated in or otherwise aided the preparation of, or audited, the financial statements, supporting schedules or other financial data filed with the Commission as a part of the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.
(xxiii) There are no actions, suits, claims, investigations or proceedings pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is or would be a party, or of which any of the respective properties or assets of the Company and the Subsidiaries is or would be subject, at law or in equity, before any court or arbitral body or by or before any federal, state, local or foreign governmental or regulatory commission, board, body, authority or agency, that (i) are required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus and are not so described, (ii) could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or on the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated hereby or (iii) could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. The aggregate of all pending legal or governmental proceedings to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or of which any of their respective properties or assets is the subject which are not described in the Prospectus, including ordinary routine litigation incidental to the Company’s business, could not reasonably be expected to (A) result in a Material Adverse Effect or (B) have a material adverse effect on the ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated hereby.
(xxiv) The Company owns or leases all such real properties as are necessary to the conduct of its operations as presently conducted in all material respects.
(xxv) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is in violation or default of (i) any provision of its memorandum and articles of association (as amended from time to time), articles of association, charter, bylaws, limited liability company agreement, certificate or agreement of limited or general partnership, or other similar organizational documents, as the case may be, of such entity, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, loan agreement or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which it is a party or bound or to which its property or assets is subject, or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation,
10
judgment, order or decree of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or any of their respective properties or assets, as applicable, except, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) above, for any such default or violation that would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxvi) Each of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian LLP, whose reports on the consolidated financial statements of the Company are filed with the Commission as part of the Company’s most recent annual report on Form 20-F filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, is (i) an independent registered public accounting firm as required by the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act and the rules of the PCAOB, (ii) in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X under the 1933 Act and (iii) a registered public accounting firm as defined by the PCAOB whose registration has not been suspended or revoked and who has not requested such registration to be withdrawn. Neither PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP nor PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian LLP has been engaged by the Company to perform any “prohibited activities” or provided to the Company any “non-audit services” (as defined in Section 10A of the 1934 Act).
(xxvii) There are no transfer taxes or other similar fees or charges under federal law, the laws of any state, any foreign law, or any political subdivision thereof, required to be paid in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the issuance by the Company or sale by the Company of the Securities; provided that Cayman Islands stamp duty may be payable if any document is executed in, brought to, or produced before a court of the Cayman Islands.
(xxviii) All tax returns of the Company and its Subsidiaries required by law to be filed have been filed or extensions thereof have been requested, and all taxes shown by such returns or otherwise assessed against the Company and its Subsidiaries, which are due and payable, have been paid, except taxes and assessments that are being contested in good faith or except where the failure to file such returns or pay such taxes or assessments would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, there is no tax deficiency which has been, or would reasonably be expected to be, asserted against the Company or its Subsidiaries, except tax deficiencies that are being contested in good faith or that would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxix) No labor dispute with the employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened, that would have a Material Adverse Effect. None of the current employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries are represented by a union and, to the knowledge of the Company, no union organizing activities are taking place. Except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and its Subsidiaries are in compliance with all federal, state or local law or foreign law relating to discrimination in hiring, promotion or pay of employees, any applicable wage or hour laws, and the rules and regulations thereunder, and analogous foreign laws and regulations.
(xxx) Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries are insured by recognized and reputable institutions with policies in such amounts and with such deductibles and covering such risks as are generally deemed adequate and customary for their businesses including, but not limited to, policies covering real and personal property owned or leased by the Company and its Subsidiaries against theft, damage, destruction, acts of vandalism and earthquakes and policies covering the Company
11
and its Subsidiaries for clinical trial liability claims. The Company has no reason to believe that it or any of its Subsidiaries will not be able (i) to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such policies expire or (ii) to obtain comparable coverage from similar institutions as may be necessary or appropriate to conduct its business as now conducted and at a cost that could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has been denied any material insurance coverage which it has sought or for which it has applied.
(xxxi) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries has good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property owned by them and good and marketable title to all personal property owned by them that is material to their business (except with respect to intellectual property, which is addressed exclusively in Section 6(xliv) and Section 6(lvi) below), in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except such as do not materially affect the value of such property and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any Subsidiary; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases (subject to the effects of (A) bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws relating to or affecting the rights or remedies of creditors generally; (B) the application of general principles of equity (including, without limitation, concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing, regardless of whether enforcement is considered in proceedings at law or in equity); and (C) applicable law and public policy with respect to rights to indemnity and contribution) with such exceptions as are not material and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company or such Subsidiary.
(xxxii) The Company and its Subsidiaries possess and are operating in compliance with such valid and current material certificates, authorizations or permits required by United States federal, state or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies to conduct their respective businesses as currently conducted and as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (collectively, “Permits”). Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is in violation of, or in default under, any of the Permits or has received any written notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of, or non-compliance with, any such certificate, authorization or permit, which, individually or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxxiii) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries make and keep accurate books and records and maintain a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that: (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain accountability for assets; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences; and (v) the interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and is prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.
12
(xxxiv) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries have established and maintain disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the 1934 Act), which (i) are designed to ensure that information relating to the Company, including its consolidated Subsidiaries, is made known to the Company’s principal executive officer and its principal financial officer by others within those entities, particularly during the periods in which the periodic reports required under the 1934 Act are being prepared and (ii) have been evaluated by management of the Company for effectiveness as of the end of the Company’s most recent year end. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, since the end of the Company’s most recent audited fiscal year, there has been no material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting, including corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies or material weaknesses. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Company is not aware of any change in its internal control over financial reporting that has occurred during its most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.
(xxxv) The Company and its Subsidiaries have operated their business in a manner compliant in all material respects with all United States federal, state, local and non-United States privacy, data security and data protection laws and regulations applicable to the Company’s collection, use, transfer, protection, disposal, disclosure, handling, storage and analysis of personal data. The Company and its Subsidiaries have been and are in compliance in all material respects with internal policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure the integrity and security of the data collected, handled or stored in connection with its business; the Company and its Subsidiaries have been and are in compliance in all material respects with internal policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance with the Applicable Laws (as defined below) that govern privacy and data security and take, and have taken reasonably appropriate steps designed to assure compliance with such policies and procedures. The Company and its Subsidiaries have taken reasonable steps to maintain the confidentiality of personally identifiable information, protected health information, consumer information and other confidential information of the Company, its Subsidiaries and any third parties in its possession (“Sensitive Company Data”). The tangible or digital information technology systems (including computers, screens, servers, workstations, routers, hubs, switches, networks, data communications lines, technical data and hardware), software and telecommunications systems used or held for use by the Company and its Subsidiaries (the “Company IT Assets”) are adequate and operational for, in accordance with the applicable documentation and functional specifications that have been commercially released, the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries as now operated as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The Company and its Subsidiaries have used reasonable efforts to establish, and have established, commercially reasonable disaster recovery and security plans, procedures and facilities for the business consistent with industry standards and practices in all material respects, including, without limitation, for the Company IT Assets and data held or used by or for the Company and its Subsidiaries. The Company and its Subsidiaries have not suffered or incurred any security breaches, compromises or incidents with respect to any Company IT Asset or Sensitive Company Data, except where such breaches, compromises or incidents would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect; and, to the knowledge of the Company, there has been no unauthorized or illegal use of or access to any Company IT Asset or Sensitive Company Data by any unauthorized third party. The Company and its Subsidiaries have not been required to notify any individual of any information security breach, compromise or incident involving Sensitive Company Data.
(xxxvi) Neither the Company, nor any of its Subsidiaries, nor to the knowledge of the Company, any of its or their respective directors, officers or controlling persons has taken, directly or indirectly, without giving effect to any actions taken by the Underwriters, (i) any action designed to or that would reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the 1934 Act or otherwise, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities or (ii) any action designed to or that might constitute or reasonably be expected to cause or result in a violation of Regulation M under the 1934 Act.
13
(xxxvii) Except as could not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect: (i) neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is in violation of any United States federal, state or local, or any foreign, statute, law, rule, regulation, ordinance, code, policy or rule of common law or any judicial or administrative interpretation thereof, including any judicial or administrative order, consent, decree or judgment, relating to pollution or protection of human health, the environment (including, without limitation, ambient air, surface water, groundwater, land surface or subsurface strata) or wildlife, including, without limitation, laws and regulations relating to the emissions, discharges, release or threatened release of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, wastes, toxic substances, hazardous substances, petroleum or petroleum products (collectively, “Hazardous Materials”) or otherwise related to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Hazardous Materials (collectively, “Environmental Laws”), which violation includes, but is not limited to, noncompliance with any permits or other governmental authorizations required for the operation of the business of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries under applicable Environmental Laws, or noncompliance with the terms and conditions thereof, nor has the Company or any of its Subsidiaries received any written communication, whether from a governmental authority, citizens group, employee or otherwise, that alleges that the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is in violation of any Environmental Law; (ii) the Company and its Subsidiaries have all material permits, authorizations and approvals required under any applicable Environmental Laws and are in compliance with their requirements; (iii) there are no pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened administrative, regulatory or judicial actions, suits, demands, demand letters, claims, liens, notices of noncompliance or violation, investigation or proceedings relating to any Environmental Law against the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or any investigation with respect to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries has received written notice or any written notice by any person or entity alleging potential liability for investigatory costs, cleanup costs, governmental responses costs, natural resources damages, property damages, personal injuries, attorneys’ fees or penalties arising out of, based on or resulting from the presence, or release into the environment, of any Hazardous Materials at any location owned, leased or operated by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, now or in the past; and (iv) to the Company’s knowledge, there are no past or present actions, activities, events, conditions, incidents or circumstances that would reasonably be expected to result in a violation of any Environmental Law or form the basis of an order for clean-up or remediation, or an action, suit, investigation or proceeding by any private party or governmental body or agency, against or affecting the Company or any of its Subsidiaries relating to Hazardous Materials or any Environmental Laws.
(xxxviii) The Company and any “employee benefit plan” (as defined under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (collectively, “ERISA”)) established or maintained by the Company, or its “ERISA Affiliates” (as defined below) are in compliance in all material respects with ERISA. “ERISA Affiliates” means, with respect to the Company, any member of any group of organizations described in Sections 414(b), (c), (m) or (o) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (the “Code”) of which the Company is a member. Except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, no “reportable event” (as defined under ERISA) has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur with respect to any “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company, or any of its ERISA Affiliates. Except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, no “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company or any of its ERISA Affiliates,
14
if such “employee benefit plan” were terminated, would have any “amount of unfunded benefit liabilities” (as defined under ERISA). Except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, neither the Company nor any of its ERISA Affiliates has incurred or reasonably expects to incur any liability under (i) Title IV of ERISA with respect to termination of, or withdrawal from, any “employee benefit plan” or (ii) Sections 412, 4971, 4975 or 4980B of the Code. Each “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company or any of its ERISA Affiliates that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code is so qualified and nothing has occurred, whether by action or failure to act, which would reasonably be expected to cause the loss of such qualification.
(xxxix) The Company is in compliance in all material respects with, and there is and has been no failure on the part of the Company and, to the Company’s knowledge, any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply with, any applicable provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and all rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or implementing the provisions thereof (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”) and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith, including Section 402 relating to loans.
(xl) Neither the Company, any of its Subsidiaries, nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any of their respective directors, officers, agents, employees or affiliates, has taken or will take any action in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization or approval of the unlawful payment or giving of money, property, gifts or anything else of value, directly or indirectly, to any “government official” (including any officer or employee of a government or government-owned or controlled entity or of a public international organization, or any person acting in an official capacity for or on behalf of any of the foregoing, or any political party or party official or candidate for political office) to influence official action or secure an improper advantage; and the Company, each of its Subsidiaries and, to the Company’s knowledge, each of their respective affiliates have conducted their businesses in compliance with applicable anti-corruption laws.
(xli) None of the Company, any Subsidiary, affiliate, director, officer or employee thereof or, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, any agent, representative or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or affiliates, is aware of or has taken any action, directly or indirectly, that would result in a violation by such persons of any applicable anti-corruption laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (the “FCPA”), including, without limitation, making use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay or authorization of the payment of any money, or other property, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to any “foreign official” (as such term is defined in the FCPA) or any foreign political party or official thereof or any candidate for foreign political office or otherwise took any action (or failed to fully disclose any action) in contravention of the FCPA; and the Company, its Subsidiaries and each of their respective affiliates have conducted their businesses in compliance with the FCPA and have instituted and maintain, and will continue to maintain, policies and procedures designed to ensure, and which are reasonably expected to continue to ensure, continued compliance therewith.
(xlii) The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements and the money laundering statutes and the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit, investigation or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, threatened.
15
(xliii) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries, nor any director or officer thereof, nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any employee, agent, affiliate or representative of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, is currently or is owned or controlled by an individual or entity that is subject to any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States government (including, without limitation, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the United States Department of the Treasury), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, His Majesty’s Treasury or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”) or is located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject or target of Sanctions (currently, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and the Crimea, so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, and so-called Luhansk People’s Republic regions of Ukraine); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the sale of the Securities, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any Subsidiary, or any joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing or facilitating the activities of or business of any person or entity, or in any country or territory, that currently or at the time of such financing or facilitation is the subject of any Sanctions or in any other manner that will result in a violation by any person or entity (including any person participating in the transactions contemplated by this Agreement) of any Sanctions. For the past five years, the Company and its Subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in and are not now knowingly engaged in any dealings or transactions with any person or entity, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of Sanctions.
(xliv) The Company and its Subsidiaries own or possess the right to use all inventions, patent applications, patents, trademarks, trade names, service names, domain names, copyrights, trade secrets, know-how and other intellectual property (collectively, “Intellectual Property”) as are (i) necessary or material for the conduct of their respective businesses as currently conducted or as currently proposed to be conducted and as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and (ii) necessary or material for the commercialization of the products described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as being under development. There is no pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened (i) action, suit, proceeding, or claim by others challenging the rights of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries in or to any such Intellectual Property that, if decided adversely to the Company or such Subsidiary would, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, and the Company is unaware of any facts which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim; (ii) action, suit, proceeding, or claim by others that the Company or any of its Subsidiaries infringes, misappropriates, or otherwise violates any Intellectual Property of others that, if decided adversely to the Company or such Subsidiary would, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, and the Company is unaware of any facts which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim; or (iii) action, suit, proceeding, or claim by others challenging the validity, scope, or enforceability of any such Intellectual Property owned or licensed by the Company or its Subsidiaries and the Company is unaware of any facts which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim. To the best of the Company’s knowledge, the operation of the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries as now conducted, and as described in the Prospectus, and in connection with the development and commercialization of the products described in the Prospectus does not infringe, misappropriate, conflict with or otherwise violate any claim of any patent of any other person or entity. There is no prior art of which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is aware that may render any patent owned or licensed by the Company or its Subsidiaries invalid or any patent application owned or licensed by the Company or its Subsidiaries unpatentable which has not been disclosed to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The Company’s granted or issued patents, registered trademarks and registered copyrights have been
16
duly maintained and are in full force and effect, and none of the patents, trademarks and copyrights have been adjudged invalid or unenforceable in whole or in part. The Company knows of no infringement, misappropriation or violation by others of any Intellectual Property owned or licensed by the Company or its Subsidiaries which would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is a party to or bound by any options, licenses or agreements with respect to the Intellectual Property of any other person or entity that are required to be set forth in the Prospectus and that are not described therein in all material respects. The Company and its Subsidiaries have taken all reasonable steps necessary to secure their interests in the Intellectual Property of the Company and its Subsidiaries from their employees and contractors and to protect the confidentiality of all of their confidential information and trade secrets. None of the technology or intellectual property used by the Company and its Subsidiaries in its business has been obtained or is being used by the Company or its Subsidiaries in violation of any contractual obligation binding on the Company or its Subsidiaries, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any of its officers, directors or employees or otherwise in violation of the rights of any persons. No third party has been granted by the Company or its Subsidiaries rights to the Intellectual Property of the Company or its Subsidiaries, including any rights that, if exercised, could enable such party to develop products competitive to those of the Company as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. All Intellectual Property owned or exclusively licensed by the Company or its Subsidiaries are free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, defects or other restrictions (other than non-exclusive licenses granted in the ordinary course of business), except those that could not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and its Subsidiaries are not subject to any judgment, order, writ, injunction or decree of any court or any federal, state, local, foreign or other governmental department, commission, board, bureau, agency or instrumentality, domestic or foreign, or any arbitrator, nor has it entered into or is it a party to any agreement made in settlement of any pending or threatened litigation, which materially restricts or impairs their use of any Intellectual Property.
(xlv) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries (i) are and have at all times been in compliance with all laws, statutes, rules, regulations or guidance applicable to the Company and its Subsidiaries and the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, distribution, marketing, advertising, labeling, promotion, sale, offer for sale, storage, import, export or disposal of any pharmaceuticals or biohazardous substances, materials or any other products developed, manufactured or distributed by the Company (including, without limitation, from the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), European Medicines Agency (“EMA”) and any local or other governmental or regulatory authority performing functions similar to those performed by the FDA or EMA) (collectively, “Applicable Laws”), except as could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, (ii) have not received any notice of adverse finding, warning letter, untitled letter or other correspondence or notice from the FDA or any other federal, state or foreign governmental authority having authority over the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or their activities alleging or asserting noncompliance with any Applicable Laws or any licenses, certificates, approvals, clearances, authorizations, permits and supplements or amendments thereto required by any such Applicable Laws (collectively, the “Governmental Permits”), (iii) have made all filings with, the appropriate local, or other governmental or regulatory agencies or bodies that are necessary for the ownership or lease of their respective properties or the conduct of their respective businesses as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except where any failures to possess or make the same would not, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, (iv) possess all material Governmental Permits necessary to conduct their respective businesses as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, and such Governmental Permits are valid and in full force and effect and are
17
not in violation of any term of any such Governmental Permits, (v) have filed, obtained, maintained or submitted all material reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments as required by any Applicable Laws or Governmental Permits and that all such reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments were complete and correct in all material respects on the date filed (or were corrected or supplemented by a subsequent submission), and (vi) are not a party to any corporate integrity agreements, monitoring agreements, consent decrees, settlement orders or similar agreements with or imposed by any governmental authority. All Governmental Permits are valid and in full force and effect, except where the validity or failure to be in full force and effect would not, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received notification of any revocation, modification, suspension, termination or invalidation (or proceedings related thereto) of any such Governmental Permit and the Company has no reason to believe that any such Governmental Permit will not be renewed. Neither the Company, any of its Subsidiaries nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any of their respective directors, officers, employees or agents has been convicted of any crime under any Applicable Laws or has been the subject of an FDA debarment proceeding. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has been nor is now subject to the FDA’s Application Integrity Policy. To the Company’s knowledge, neither the Company, any of its Subsidiaries nor any of its directors, officers, employees or agents has made, or caused the making of, any false statements on, or material omissions from, any other records or documentation prepared or maintained to comply with the requirements of the FDA or any other governmental authority.
(xlvi) There is no legal or governmental proceeding to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or of which any property or assets of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is the subject, including any proceeding before the FDA, the EMA or any foreign, local, national or other governmental agency with jurisdiction over the types of products being developed by the Company that is required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus and is not described therein, or which, singularly or in the aggregate, if determined adversely to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental or regulatory authorities or threatened by others. The Company and its Subsidiaries (i) have not received notice of any claim, action, suit, proceeding, hearing, enforcement, investigation, arbitration or other action from any governmental authority or third party alleging that any product operation or activity is in violation of any Applicable Laws or Governmental Permits and have no knowledge that any such governmental authority or third party is considering any such claim, litigation, arbitration, action, suit, investigation or proceeding and (ii) have not received notice that any governmental authority has taken, is taking or intends to take action to limit, suspend, modify or revoke any Governmental Permits and the Company has no knowledge that any such governmental authority is considering such action.
(xlvii) The research, non-clinical pre-clinical studies and clinical studies and tests conducted or being conducted by or on behalf of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or in which any of their respective product candidates have participated and, to the Company’s knowledge, the preclinical studies and clinical trials directed or sponsored by the Company’s collaborators (collectively, the “Studies”) that are described in, or the results of which are referred to in, the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus were and, if still pending, are being conducted in all material respects in accordance with the protocols, procedures and controls pursuant to all Applicable Laws and Governmental Permits and with standard medical and scientific research procedures; each description of the results of such Studies is accurate and complete in all material respects and fairly presents the data derived from such Studies, and the Company and its Subsidiaries have no knowledge of any other research, non-clinical studies or
18
tests the results of which are inconsistent with, or otherwise call into question, the results described or referred to in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; the Company and its Subsidiaries have made all such filings and obtained all such approvals as may be required by the EMA, the FDA or any committee thereof or from any other United States or foreign government agency with jurisdiction over the types of products being developed by the Company; neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has received any notice of, or correspondence from, any governmental authority requiring the termination, suspension or modification of any Study; and the Company and its Subsidiaries have each operated and currently are in compliance in all material respects with all applicable rules, regulations and policies of all governmental authorities. There have been no material serious adverse events resulting from any Study. To the Company’s knowledge, the manufacturing facilities and operations of its suppliers are operated in compliance in all material respects with all Applicable Laws and Governmental Permits.
(xlviii) The Company is not required to register as a “broker” or “dealer” in accordance with the provisions of the 1934 Act and does not, directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, control or have any other association with (within the meaning of Article I of the By-laws of FINRA) any member firm of FINRA. No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company, on the one hand, and the directors, officers or shareholders of the Company, on the other hand, which is required by the rules of FINRA to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, which is not so described. All of the information (including, but not limited to, information regarding affiliations, security ownership and trading activity) provided to the Underwriters or its counsel by the Company, its officers and directors and the holders of any securities (debt or equity) or warrants, options or rights to acquire any securities of the Company in connection with the filing to be made and other supplemental information to be provided to FINRA pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110 in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement is true, complete and correct.
(xlix) The Company is not a shell company (as defined in Rule 405) and has not been a shell company for at least 12 calendar months previously.
(l) Neither the Company nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any of its affiliates (within the meaning of Rule 144 under the 1933 Act) has, prior to the date hereof, made any offer or sale of any securities which could be “integrated” (within the meaning of the 1933 Act) with the offer and sale of the Securities hereunder.
(li) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has (i) failed to pay any dividend or sinking fund installment on preferred shares or (ii) defaulted on any installment or payment due on indebtedness for borrowed money or on any rental on one or more long-term leases, which defaults, individually or in the aggregate, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(lii) Each financial or operational projection or other “forward-looking statement” (as defined by Section 27A of the 1933 Act or Section 21E of the 1934 Act) contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (i) was so included by the Company in good faith and with reasonable basis after due consideration by the Company of the underlying assumptions, estimates and other applicable facts and circumstances and (ii) as required, is accompanied by meaningful cautionary statements identifying those factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statement.
19
(liii) There are no relationships, direct or indirect, or related party transactions involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or any other person (including any director, officer, shareholder, customer or supplier of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries) required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that have not been described as required. There are no material outstanding loans, advances (except normal advances for business expenses in the ordinary course of business) or guarantees of indebtedness by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries to or for the benefit of any of the officers or directors of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or any of the family members of any of such persons.
(liv) The Company is not in or subject to a bankruptcy or insolvency proceeding in any jurisdiction.
(lv) The Company and its Subsidiaries (i) are in compliance, in all material respects, with any and all applicable foreign, federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations, treaties, statutes and codes promulgated by any and all governmental authorities (including pursuant to the Occupational Health and Safety Act) relating to the protection of human health and safety the workplace (“Occupational Laws”); (ii) have received all material permits, licenses or other approvals required of it under applicable Occupational Laws to conduct their respective businesses as currently conducted; and (iii) are in compliance, in all material respects, with all terms and conditions of such permit, license or approval. No action, proceeding, revocation proceeding, writ, injunction or claim is pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened against the Company or any of its Subsidiaries relating to Occupational Laws.
(lvi) The Company has duly and properly filed or caused to be filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (the “PTO”) and applicable foreign and international patent and trademark authorities all patents, trademarks, copyrights and applications relating to the same owned by the Company and its Subsidiaries (the “Company Patent and Trademark Applications”). To the knowledge of the Company, the Company has complied with the PTO’s duty of candor and disclosure for the Company Patent and Trademark Applications and has made no material misrepresentation in the Company Patent and Trademark Applications. To the Company’s knowledge, the Company Patent and Trademark Applications disclose patentable subject matter. The Company has not been notified of any inventorship challenges nor has any interference been declared or provoked nor is any material fact known by the Company that would preclude the issuance of patents with respect to the Company Patent and Trademark Applications or would render such patents, if issued, invalid or unenforceable. Except as would not have a Material Adverse Effect, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has breached and is currently in breach of any provision of any license, contract or other agreement governing the use by the Company or its Subsidiaries of Intellectual Property owned by third parties (collectively, the “Licenses”) and no third party has alleged any such breach and the Company is unaware of any facts that would form a reasonable basis for such a claim. To the Company’s knowledge, no other party to the Licenses has breached or is currently in breach of any provision of the Licenses. Each of the Licenses is in full force and effect and constitutes a valid and binding agreement between the parties thereto, enforceable in accordance with its terms, and there has not occurred any breach or default under any such Licenses or any event that, with the giving of notice or lapse of time, would constitute a breach or default thereunder. Except as would not have a Material Adverse Effect, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries has been and is currently involved in any disputes regarding the Licenses. To the Company’s knowledge, all patents licensed to the Company pursuant to the Licenses are valid, enforceable and being duly maintained. To the Company’s knowledge, all patent applications licensed to the Company pursuant to the Licenses are being duly prosecuted.
20
(lvii) Except as provided by laws or statutes generally applicable to transactions of the type described in this Agreement, neither the Company nor its properties or assets has immunity under Cayman Islands, U.S. federal or New York state law from any legal action, suit or proceeding, from the giving of any relief in any such legal action, suit or proceeding, from set-off or counterclaim, from the jurisdiction of the Cayman Islands, U.S. federal or New York state court, from service of process, attachment upon or prior to judgment, or attachment in aid of execution of judgment, or from execution of a judgment, or other legal process or proceeding for the giving of any relief or for the enforcement of a judgment, in any such court with respect to their respective obligations, liabilities or any other matter under or arising out of or in connection herewith; and, to the extent that the Company or any of its properties, assets or revenues may have or may hereafter become entitled to any such right of immunity in any such court in which proceedings arising out of, or relating to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, may at any time be commenced, the Company has, pursuant to this Agreement, waived, and it will waive such right to the extent permitted by law.
(lviii) The choice of laws of the State of New York as the governing law of this Agreement is a valid choice of law under the laws of the Cayman Islands. The Company has the power to submit and, pursuant to Section 17 of this Agreement, has validly and irrevocably submitted to the personal jurisdiction of each Specified Court (as defined below) and to the exclusive jurisdiction of any court sitting therein.
(lix) Subject to the conditions and qualifications set forth in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, a final and conclusive judgment against the Company for a definitive sum of money entered by any court in the United States may be enforced by a Cayman Islands court.
(lx) No CSRC Filings (as defined below) with, or authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree of, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (the “CSRC”), the Cyberspace Administration of China or any other governmental entity in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) is necessary or required for the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, in connection with the registration of the Securities with the Commission, the offering, issuance or sale of the Securities, the trading of the Securities on Nasdaq, or the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement. None of the Company or, to the knowledge of the Company, its controlling shareholders and actual controllers, board of directors, and senior management (collectively, the “Responsible Parties”) and their respective employees and affiliates (collectively, the “Company Parties”) or the Underwriters or its affiliates are required to make any filings (including the CSRC filing report and other supporting documents, and any amendments or supplements thereto) or undertakings with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (the “CSRC”) in connection with the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement (any such filings or undertakings of the Company Parties, the “CSRC Filings”). The Company understands and acknowledges the content of the CSRC’s Trial Administrative Measures of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies enacted on February 17, 2023, its supporting guidelines and any other related laws and regulations, as amended and supplemented from time to time (collectively, the “CSRC Measures”). The Company has received legal advice specifically with respect to the CSRC Measures from its PRC counsel, and the Company understands such legal advice. The Company is not prohibited from offering and listing the Securities outside the PRC under the CSRC Measures or other applicable laws and regulations of the PRC.
21
(lxi) The Company is not subject to the applicable requirements under the Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration in Respect of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies (关于加强境内企业境外发行证券和上市相关保密和档案管理工作的规定 ) issued by the CSRC, Ministry of Finance, State Secrecy Administration and State Archives Bureau on February 24, 2023 (the “Chinese Confidentiality Provisions”), the Trial Administrative Measures of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies enacted by the CSRC on February 17, 2023 and its supporting guidelines, and other applicable laws and regulations relating to state secrets, confidentiality and archive administration, and data protection in the PRC in connection with the offering and listing of the Securities (collectively, the “Data Protection Requirements”).
(b) Officer’s Certificates. Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries delivered to the Representative or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.
SECTION 2. Sale and Delivery to Underwriters; Closing.
(a) Securities. On the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained and subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to sell to each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, and each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase from the Company, at the price per ADS set forth in Schedule A, that number of Securities set forth in Schedule A opposite the name of such Underwriter, plus any additional number of Securities which such Underwriter may become obligated to purchase pursuant to the provisions of Section 10 hereof, subject, in each case, to such adjustments among the Underwriters as the Representative in its sole discretion shall make to eliminate any sales or purchases of fractional ADSs.
(b) Payment. Payment of the purchase price for, and delivery of certificates or security entitlements for, the Securities shall be made through the offices of Covington & Burling LLP, 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, or at such other place as shall be agreed upon by the Representative and the Company, at 10:00 A.M. (New York City time) on the second (third, if the pricing occurs after 4:30 P.M. (New York City time) on any given day) business day after the date hereof (unless postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10), or such other time not later than ten business days after such date as shall be agreed upon by the Representative and the Company (such time and date of payment and delivery being herein called “Closing Time”). The Company will issue and deposit the Underlying Shares with the Depositary and will, or will cause the Depositary through an issuance and delivery order to, electronically transfer the Securities at the Closing Time by crediting the Representative’s or its designee’s account (provided the Representative shall have given the Company written notice of such designee prior to the Closing Time) at The Depository Trust Company only through its Deposit and Withdrawal at Custodian System (“DWAC”) or by such other means of delivery as may be mutually agreed upon by the parties hereto, which in all cases shall be duly authorized, freely tradeable, transferable, registered ADSs in good deliverable form. Payment shall be made to the Company by wire transfer of immediately available funds to a bank account designated by the Company, against delivery to the Representative for the respective accounts of the Underwriters of security entitlements for the Securities to be purchased by them. It is understood that each Underwriter has authorized the Representative, for its account, to accept delivery of, receipt for, and make payment of the purchase price for, the Securities, if any, which it has agreed to purchase. Leerink Partners, individually and not as representative of the Underwriters, may (but shall not be obligated to) make payment of the purchase price for the Securities, if any, to be purchased by any Underwriter whose funds have not been received by the Closing Time, but such payment shall not relieve such Underwriter from its obligations hereunder.
22
SECTION 3. Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants with each Underwriter as follows:
(a) Compliance with Securities Regulations and Commission Requests. The Company, subject to Section 3(b), will comply with the requirements of Rule 430B, and will notify the Representative as soon as practicable, and confirm the notice in writing, (i) when any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement shall become effective or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus shall have been filed, (ii) of the receipt of any comments from the Commission, (iii) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus (including any document incorporated by reference therein) or for additional information, (iv) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment or of any order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus, or of the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation or threatening of any proceedings for any of such purposes or of any examination pursuant to Section 8(d) or 8(e) of the 1933 Act concerning the Registration Statement and (v) if the Company becomes the subject of a proceeding under Section 8A of the 1933 Act in connection with the offering of the Securities. The Company will effect all filings required under Rule 424(b), in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b) (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8)), and will take such steps as it deems necessary to ascertain promptly whether the form of prospectus transmitted for filing under Rule 424(b) was received for filing by the Commission and, in the event that it was not, it will promptly file such prospectus. The Company will make every reasonable effort to prevent the issuance of any stop order, prevention or suspension and, if any such order is issued, to obtain the lifting thereof as soon as reasonably practicable.
(b) Continued Compliance with Securities Laws. The Company will comply with the 1933 Act, the 1933 Act Regulations, the 1934 Act and the 1934 Act Regulations so as to permit the completion of the distribution of the Securities as contemplated in this Agreement and in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. If at any time when a prospectus relating to the Securities is (or, but for the exception afforded by Rule 172 of the 1933 Act Regulations (“Rule 172”), would be) required by the 1933 Act to be delivered in connection with sales of the Securities, any event shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which it is necessary, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters or for the Company, to (i) amend the Registration Statement in order that the Registration Statement will not include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (ii) amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus in order that the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as the case may be, will not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading in the light of the circumstances existing at the time it is delivered to a purchaser or (iii) amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as the case may be, in order to comply with the requirements of the 1933 Act or the 1933 Act Regulations, the Company will promptly (A) give the Representative notice of such event, (B) prepare any amendment or supplement as may be necessary to correct such statement or omission or to make the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus comply with such requirements and, a reasonable amount of time prior to any proposed filing or use, furnish the Representative with copies of any such amendment or supplement and (C) file with the Commission any such amendment or supplement; provided that the Company shall not file or use any such amendment or supplement to which the Representative or counsel for the Underwriters shall object. The Company will furnish to the Underwriters such number of copies of such amendment or supplement as the Underwriters may reasonably request. The Company has given the Representative notice of any filings made pursuant to the 1934 Act or the 1934 Act Regulations as soon as reasonably practicable prior to the Applicable Time; the Company will give the Representative notice of its intention to make any such filing from the Applicable Time to the Closing Time and will furnish the Representative with copies of any such documents a reasonable amount of time prior to such proposed filing, as the case may be, and will not file or use any such document to which the Representative or counsel for the Underwriters shall reasonably object.
23
(c) Delivery of Registration Statements. The Company has furnished or will deliver to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters, without charge, conformed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed and each amendment thereto (including exhibits filed therewith or incorporated by reference therein and documents incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference therein) and signed copies of all consents and certificates of experts, and will also deliver to the Representative, without charge, a conformed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed and each amendment thereto (without exhibits) for each of the Underwriters. The copies of the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(d) Delivery of Prospectuses. The Company has delivered to each Underwriter, without charge, as many copies of each preliminary prospectus as such Underwriter reasonably requested, and the Company hereby consents to the use of such copies for purposes permitted by the 1933 Act. The Company will furnish to each Underwriter, without charge, during the period when a prospectus relating to the Securities is (or, but for the exception afforded by Rule 172, would be) required to be delivered under the 1933 Act, such number of copies of the Prospectus (as amended or supplemented) as such Underwriter may reasonably request. The Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(e) Blue Sky Qualifications. The Company will use its best efforts, in cooperation with the Underwriters, to qualify the Securities for offering and sale under the applicable securities laws of such states and other jurisdictions (domestic or foreign) as the Representative may designate and to maintain such qualifications in effect so long as required to complete the distribution of the Securities; provided, however, that the Company shall not be obligated to file any general consent to service of process or to qualify as a foreign corporation or as a dealer in securities in any jurisdiction in which it is not so qualified or to subject itself to taxation in respect of doing business in any jurisdiction in which it is not otherwise so subject.
(f) Rule 158. The Company will timely file such reports pursuant to the 1934 Act as are necessary in order to make generally available (which may be satisfied by filing with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR) to its securityholders as soon as practicable an earning statement for the purposes of, and to provide to the Underwriters the benefits contemplated by, the last paragraph of Section 11(a) of the 1933 Act.
(g) Use of Proceeds. The Company will use the net proceeds received by it from the sale of the Securities in all material respects in the manner specified in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the heading “Use of Proceeds.”
(h) Listing. The Company will use its best efforts to effect and maintain the listing of the Common Stock (including the Securities) on Nasdaq.
(i) Restriction on Sale of Securities. During a period of 90 days from the date of the Prospectus, the Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representative, (i) directly or indirectly, offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase or otherwise transfer or dispose of any ADSs, Ordinary Shares or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Ordinary
24
Shares or file or confidentially submit any registration statement under the 1933 Act with respect to any of the foregoing, (ii) enter into any swap or any other agreement or any transaction that transfers, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, the economic consequence of ownership of the Ordinary Shares, whether any such swap or transaction described in clause (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by delivery of Ordinary Shares or such other securities, in cash or otherwise or (iii) publicly announce an intention to effect any such swap, agreement or other transaction described in clauses (i) and (ii). The foregoing sentence shall not apply to (A) the Securities to be sold hereunder; (B) any Ordinary Shares issued by the Company upon the exercise of an option or warrant, the vesting of restricted share units or the conversion of a convertible security outstanding on the date hereof and referred to in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; (C) any Ordinary Shares issued or options to purchase Ordinary Shares or restricted share units granted pursuant to existing employee benefit plans or share incentive plans of the Company referred to in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; (D) any Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to any existing non-employee director stock plan or dividend reinvestment plan referred to in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; or (E) the filing by the Company of any registration statement with the Commission on Form S-8 or a successor form thereto.
(j) Reporting Requirements. The Company, during the period when a Prospectus relating to the Securities is (or, but for the exception afforded by Rule 172, would be) required to be delivered under the 1933 Act, will file all documents required to be filed with the Commission pursuant to the 1934 Act within the time periods required by the 1934 Act and 1934 Act Regulations. Additionally, the Company shall report the use of proceeds from the issuance of the Securities as may be required under Rule 463 under the 1933 Act.
(k) Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses. The Company agrees that, unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Representative, it will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or that would otherwise constitute a “free writing prospectus,” or a portion thereof, required to be filed by the Company with the Commission or retained by the Company under Rule 433; provided that the Representative will be deemed to have consented to the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses listed on Schedule B-2 hereto and any “road show that is a written communication” within the meaning of Rule 433(d)(8)(i) that has been reviewed by the Representative. The Company represents that it has treated or agrees that it will treat each such free writing prospectus consented to, or deemed consented to, by the Representative as an “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433, and that it has complied and will comply with the applicable requirements of Rule 433 with respect thereto, including timely filing with the Commission where required, legending and record keeping. If at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicted or would conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus or included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Representative and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict, untrue statement or omission.
(l) Testing-the-Waters Materials. If at any time following the distribution of any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Representative and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication to eliminate or correct such untrue statement or omission.
25
(m) Tax Indemnity. The Company will indemnify and hold harmless the Underwriters against any documentary, stamp or similar issue tax, including any interest and penalties, on the creation, issue and sale of the Securities and on the execution and delivery of this Agreement or any other documents to be furnished hereunder. All payments to be made by the Company hereunder to the Underwriters, their affiliates, and each of their respective officers, directors, employees, partners, agents and members and each person, if any, who controls an Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act shall be made without withholding or deduction for or on account of any present or future taxes, duties or governmental charges whatsoever unless the Company is compelled by law to deduct or withhold such taxes, duties or charges. The Company shall pay such additional amounts as may be necessary in order that the net amounts received by any of such persons after any tax payment, withholding or deduction shall equal the amounts that would have been received if no payment, withholding or deduction had been made.
(n) Depositary. The Company has engaged and will maintain, at its sole expense, a depositary for the ADSs.
(o) CSRC Matters. The Company shall comply, and will use commercially reasonable efforts to require its Responsible Parties, in their capacities as such, to comply with all laws, regulations, guidelines, notices and announcements in the PRC applicable to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, and will promptly advise the Underwriters of any questions or comments relating to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or any CSRC Filing received from the CSRC. If an Underwriter is or becomes subject to obligations under applicable laws, rules and regulations in the PRC (whether having the force of law or otherwise), including the CSRC Measures and the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions, in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement (the “Underwriter Obligations”), the Company agrees to, and will use commercially reasonable efforts to require its Responsible Parties, in their capacities as such, to: (i) cooperate fully with and provide assistance to such Underwriter to facilitate the performance of the Underwriter Obligations, including without limitation, the performance of due diligence work, verification, investigations and record-keeping which such Underwriter reasonably deems appropriate and to the extent required by law; (ii) assist such Underwriter to address fully and to the reasonable satisfaction of such Underwriter any matters raised by the CSRC in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; and (iii) furnish and provide such information, documents, certificates and opinions as such Underwriter may require for the purposes of making any CSRC Filings and enabling them to pass upon the accuracy and completeness of any statement in any CSRC Filings as contemplated herein, or in order to evidence the accuracy of any of the representations and warranties, or the satisfaction of any of the conditions or agreements, herein contained, in each case save to the extent prohibited by the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions. If any event occurs as a result of which the Company becomes required to submit, or voluntarily submits, a CSRC Filing or an Underwriter becomes required to submit a CSRC Filing, then the Company will promptly notify such Underwriter of such event and will promptly prepare and file with the CSRC and furnish, at its own expense, to such Underwriter, a CSRC Filing in accordance with applicable laws, rules and regulations in the PRC, and the Company agrees that: (w) any CSRC Filings and documents, records and information provided by the Company Parties including, where applicable, as set forth in the CSRC Filings (collectively, the “CSRC Disclosures”) and any amendment and supplement thereto will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the CSRC Measures at the time such filings, disclosure, amendments and supplements are made; (x) the Company will prepare and review the CSRC Filings and CSRC Disclosures and any amendment and supplement thereto and confirm that they are in all material respects truthful, accurate and complete in their entirety and do not contain any misrepresentation, misleading statement or material omission; (y) the Company shall use commercially reasonable efforts to procure the existing shareholders of the Company to provide true, accurate and complete information about the relevant shareholder’s shareholding structure and descriptions for disclosure in the CSRC Filings, such that no material information or facts are omitted or withheld therefrom; and (z) the Company will promptly advise the Underwriters of any
26
proposal to amend or supplement the CSRC Filings, and will notify the Underwriters promptly of any amendment or supplement to a CSRC Filing, any questions or comments on the CSRC Filings received from the CSRC or any request by the CSRC for any amendment or supplement to any CSRC Filing. In connection with any CSRC Filing, the Company shall furnish to the Underwriters such further information, opinions, certificates, letters and other documents as the Underwriters may reasonably request. The Company agrees to comply with any applicable requirements under the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions and the Data Protection Requirements including, without limitation: (A) identifying any “state secrets” or any “secrets relating to the works of government authorities of the PRC” as defined under applicable law or any information that would or is expected to have an adverse impact on national security or public interests as prescribed under the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions (the “Relevant Information”) and not divulging any Relevant Information to the Underwriters; (B) establishing and maintaining adequate and effective internal control measures and internal systems for maintenance of data protection, confidentiality and archive administration in accordance with the Data Protection Requirements; and (C) in respect of the Company’s handling, disclosure, transfer and retention of the Relevant Information, including ensuring that confidentiality of any Relevant Information is maintained in accordance with the Data Protection Requirements and following any required approval or filing procedures.
SECTION 4. Payment of Expenses.
(a) Expenses. The Company will pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, including (i) the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement (including financial statements and exhibits) and the ADS Registration Statements as originally filed and each amendment thereto, (ii) the preparation, printing and delivery to the Underwriters of copies of each preliminary prospectus, each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto and any costs associated with electronic delivery of any of the foregoing by the Underwriters to investors, (iii) the preparation, issuance and delivery of the certificates or security entitlements for the Securities to the Underwriters, including any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable upon the sale, issuance or delivery of the Securities to the Underwriters, (iv) the fees and disbursements of the Company’s counsel, accountants and other advisors, (v) the qualification of the Securities under securities laws in accordance with the provisions of Section 3(e) hereof, including filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection therewith and in connection with the preparation of a “Blue Sky Survey” and any supplement thereto, (vi) the fees and expenses of the Depositary and any custodian, attorney-in-fact, transfer agent or registrar for the Securities, (vii) the costs and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations on any “road show” undertaken in connection with the marketing of the Securities, including without limitation, expenses associated with the production of road show slides and graphics, fees and expenses of any consultants engaged with the Company’s consent in connection with the road show presentations, travel and lodging expenses of the representatives and officers of the Company and any such consultants, and the cost of aircraft and other transportation chartered in connection with the road show, (viii) the filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters in connection with, any filing with FINRA and determining the compliance of the transactions contemplated hereby with FINRA’s rules and regulations, provided, however, that the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters relating to clauses (v) and (viii) shall not exceed $20,000 in the aggregate, (ix) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the listing of the Securities on Nasdaq, and (x) the costs and expenses (including, without limitation, any damages or other amounts payable in connection with legal or contractual liability) associated with the reforming of any contracts for sale of the Securities made by the Underwriters caused by a breach of the representation contained in the third sentence of Section 1(a)(ii). Except as provided in this Section 4, the Underwriters will pay all of their own costs and expenses, including the fees and disbursements of their counsel, any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable on the resale of any of the Securities by them and any advertising expenses connected with any offers they may make.
27
(b) Termination of Agreement. If this Agreement is terminated by the Representative in accordance with the provisions of Section 5, Section 9(a)(i), Section 9(a)(iii) or Section 10 hereof, the Company shall reimburse the non-defaulting Underwriters for all of their reasonably documented out-of-pocket expenses actually incurred, including the reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters.
SECTION 5. Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations. The obligations of the several Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Company contained herein or in certificates of any officer of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries delivered pursuant to the provisions hereof, to the performance by the Company of its covenants and other obligations hereunder, and to the following further conditions:
(a) Effectiveness of Registration Statement. The Registration Statement and the ADS Registration Statements have each become effective and, at the Closing Time, no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, the ADS Registration Statements or any post-effective amendment thereto has been issued under the 1933 Act, no order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes have been instituted or are pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, contemplated; and the Company has complied with each request (if any) from the Commission for additional information to the reasonable satisfaction of counsel to the Underwriters.
(b) Opinions of Counsel for Company. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received the opinion and the negative assurance letter, each dated the Closing Time, of Cooley LLP, counsel for the Company, together with the opinion of Harney Westwood & Riegels, Cayman Islands counsel for the Company, and the opinion of Cooley LLP, special counsel for the Company with respect to intellectual property matters, each in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters, together with signed or reproduced copies of each such letter for each of the other Underwriters.
(c) Opinion of Counsel for Underwriters. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received the opinion, and negative assurance letter, each dated the Closing Time, of Covington & Burling LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, together with signed or reproduced copies of such letters for each of the other Underwriters in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative. In giving such opinion such counsel may rely, as to all matters governed by the laws of jurisdictions other than the law of the State of New York, the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware and the federal securities laws of the United States, upon the opinions of counsel satisfactory to the Representative. Such counsel may also state that, insofar as such opinion involves factual matters, they have relied, to the extent they deem proper, upon certificates of officers and other representatives of the Company and its Subsidiaries and certificates of public officials.
(d) Opinion of Depositary’s Counsel. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received the opinion, dated the Closing Time, of Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, counsel for the Depositary, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters, together with signed or reproduced copies of each such letter for each of the other Underwriters.
(e) Officers’ Certificate. At the Closing Time, there shall not have been, since the date hereof or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, any material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, and the Representative shall have received a certificate of the principal executive officer of the Company and of the principal financial officer of the Company, dated the Closing Time, to the effect that (i) there has been no such material adverse
28
change, (ii) the representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct with the same force and effect as though expressly made at and as of the Closing Time, (iii) the Company has complied with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to the Closing Time, and (iv) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement under the 1933 Act has been issued, no order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes have been instituted or are pending or, to their knowledge, contemplated.
(f) Accountant’s Comfort Letters. At the time of the execution of this Agreement, the Representative shall have received from each of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian LLP a letter, dated such date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, together with signed or reproduced copies of such letter for each of the other Underwriters, containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(g) Bring-down Comfort Letters. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received from each of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian LLP a letter, dated as of the Closing Time, to the effect that they reaffirm the statements made in the letter furnished pursuant to subsection (f) of this Section, except that the specified date referred to shall be a date not more than three business days prior to the Closing Time.
(h) Approval of Listing. At the Closing Time, the Securities shall have been approved for listing on Nasdaq, subject only to official notice of issuance.
(i) No Objection. If the offering is subject to review by FINRA, FINRA has confirmed that it has not raised any objection with respect to the fairness and reasonableness of the underwriting terms and arrangements relating to the offering of the Securities.
(j) Lock-up Agreements. At the date of this Agreement, the Representative shall have received an agreement substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto signed by all of the Company’s directors and executive officers.
(k) Chief Financial Officer’s Certificate. On the date of this Agreement and at the Closing Time, the Representatives shall have received from the Company a certificate of its principal financial officer with respect to certain financial data contained in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, in form and substance satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.
(l) Rated Securities. Neither the Company nor its subsidiaries have any debt securities or preferred stock that are rated by any “nationally recognized statistical rating agency” (as defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the 1934 Act).
(m) Deposit of Ordinary Shares. The Deposit Agreement shall be in full force and effect and the Company and the Depositary shall have taken all action necessary to permit the deposit of the Ordinary Shares and the issuance of the Securities in accordance with the Deposit Agreement.
(n) Additional Documents. At the Closing Time, counsel for the Underwriters shall have been furnished with such other documents and opinions as they may reasonably require for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon the issuance and sale of the Securities as herein contemplated, or in order to evidence the accuracy of any of the representations or warranties, or the fulfillment of any of the conditions, herein contained; and all proceedings taken by the Company in connection with the issuance and sale of the Securities as herein contemplated shall be reasonably satisfactory in form and substance to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters.
29
(o) Termination of Agreement. If any condition specified in this Section shall not have been fulfilled when and as required to be fulfilled, this Agreement may be terminated by the Representative by notice to the Company at any time at or prior to the Closing Time, and such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 4 and except that Sections 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15, 16 and 17 shall survive any such termination and remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 6. Indemnification.
(a) Indemnification of Underwriters. The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its affiliates (as such term is defined in Rule 501(b) under the 1933 Act (each, an “Affiliate”)), its selling agents and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act (such Affiliates, selling agents and controlling persons, each an “Underwriter Indemnitee”) as follows:
(i) against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense whatsoever, as incurred, arising out of any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any information deemed to be a part thereof pursuant to Rule 430B, or the omission or alleged omission therefrom of a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading or arising out of any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact included (A) in any preliminary prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), or (B) in any materials or information provided to investors by, or with the approval of, the Company in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Securities (“Marketing Materials”), including any roadshow or investor presentations made to investors by the Company (whether in person or electronically), or the omission or alleged omission in any preliminary prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) or in any Marketing Materials of a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;
(ii) against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense whatsoever, as incurred, to the extent of the aggregate amount paid in settlement of any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or of any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue statement or omission, or any such alleged untrue statement or omission; provided that (subject to Section 6(d) below) any such settlement is effected with the written consent of the Company;
(iii) against any and all expense whatsoever, as reasonably incurred (including the fees and disbursements of counsel chosen by the Representative), reasonably incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue statement or omission, or any such alleged untrue statement or omission, to the extent that any such expense is not paid under (i) or (ii) above;
30
provided, however, that this indemnity agreement shall not apply to any loss, liability, claim, damage or expense to the extent arising out of any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any information deemed to be a part thereof pursuant to Rule 430B, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) in reliance upon and in conformity with the Underwriter Information. In the event that the Company becomes subject to the CSRC Measures, the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions or the Data Protection Requirements, the Company will indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter Indemnitee, from and against any and all losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or suits, actions or proceedings in respect thereof) that arise out of or are based upon the Company’s violation of any CSRC Measures or the Company’s non-compliance with the Chinese Confidentiality Provisions or the Data Protection Requirements. This indemnity agreements will be in addition to any liability that the Company might otherwise have.
(b) Indemnification of Company, Directors and Officers. Each Underwriter severally agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors, each of its officers who signed the Registration Statement, and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act, against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense described in the indemnity contained in subsection (a) of this Section, as incurred, but only with respect to untrue statements or omissions, or alleged untrue statements or omissions, made in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any information deemed to be a part thereof pursuant to Rule 430B, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) in reliance upon and in conformity with the Underwriter Information.
(c) Actions against Parties; Notification. Each indemnified party shall give notice as promptly as reasonably practicable to each indemnifying party of any action commenced against it in respect of which indemnity may be sought hereunder, but failure to so notify an indemnifying party shall not relieve such indemnifying party from any liability hereunder to the extent it is not materially prejudiced as a result thereof and in any event shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have otherwise than on account of this indemnity agreement. In the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 6(a) above, counsel to the indemnified parties shall be selected by the Representative, and, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 6(b) above, counsel to the indemnified parties shall be selected by the Company. An indemnifying party may participate at its own expense in the defense of any such action; provided, however, that counsel to the indemnifying party shall not (except with the consent of the indemnified party) also be counsel to the indemnified party. In no event shall the indemnifying parties be liable for the reasonable fees and expenses of more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) separate from their own counsel for all indemnified parties in connection with any one action or separate but similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same general allegations or circumstances. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever in respect of which indemnification or contribution could be sought under this Section 6 or Section 7 hereof (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential parties thereto), unless such settlement, compromise or consent (i) includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising out of such litigation, investigation, proceeding or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
(d) Settlement without Consent if Failure to Reimburse. If at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel, such indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of the nature contemplated by Section 6(a)(ii) effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 45 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request, (ii) such indemnifying party shall have received notice of the terms of such settlement at least 30 days prior to such settlement being entered into and (iii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed such indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement.
31
SECTION 7. Contribution. If the indemnification provided for in Section 6 hereof is for any reason unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party in respect of any losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the aggregate amount of such losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by such indemnified party, as incurred, (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, from the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) above but also the relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and of the Underwriters, on the other hand, in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations.
The relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, in connection with the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the total net proceeds from the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement (before deducting expenses) received by the Company, on the one hand, and the total underwriting discount received by the Underwriters, on the other hand, in each case as set forth on the cover of the Prospectus, bear to the aggregate offering price of the Securities as set forth on the cover of the Prospectus.
The relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether any such untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Underwriters and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.
The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 7 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section 7. The aggregate amount of losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by an indemnified party and referred to above in this Section 7 shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 7, no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriter in connection with the Securities underwritten by it and distributed to the public.
No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the 1933 Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.
For purposes of this Section 7, each person, if any, who controls an Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act and each Underwriter’s Affiliates and selling agents shall have the same rights to contribution as such Underwriter, and each director of the Company, each officer of the Company who signed the Registration Statement, and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act shall have the same rights to contribution as the Company. The Underwriters’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 7 are several in proportion to the number of Securities set forth opposite their respective names in Schedule A hereto and not joint.
32
SECTION 8. Representations, Warranties and Agreements to Survive. All representations, warranties and agreements contained in this Agreement or in certificates of officers of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries submitted pursuant hereto, shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or its Affiliates or selling agents, any person controlling any Underwriter, its officers or directors or any person controlling the Company and (ii) delivery of and payment for the Securities.
SECTION 9. Termination of Agreement.
(a) Termination. The Representative may terminate this Agreement, by notice to the Company, at any time at or prior to the Closing Time (i) if there has been, in the judgment of the Representative, since the time of execution of this Agreement or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, any material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, (ii) if there has occurred any material adverse change in the financial markets in the United States or the international financial markets, any outbreak of hostilities or escalation thereof or other calamity or crisis or any change or development involving a prospective change in U.S. or international political, financial or economic conditions, in each case the effect of which is such as to make it, in the judgment of the Representative, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the completion of the offering or to enforce contracts for the sale of the Securities, (iii) if trading in any securities of the Company has been suspended or materially limited by the Commission or Nasdaq, (iv) if trading generally on the NYSE MKT or the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq has been suspended or materially limited, or minimum or maximum prices for trading have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices have been required, by any of said exchanges or by order of the Commission, FINRA or any other governmental authority, (v) a material disruption has occurred in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States or with respect to Clearstream or Euroclear systems in Europe, or (vi) if a banking moratorium has been declared by either U.S. Federal or New York authorities.
(b) Liabilities. If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to this Section, such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 4 hereof, and provided further that Sections 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 15, 16 and 17 shall survive such termination and remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 10. Default by One or More of the Underwriters. If one or more of the Underwriters shall fail at the Closing Time to purchase the Securities which it or they are obligated to purchase under this Agreement (the “Defaulted Securities”), the Representative shall have the right, within 24 hours thereafter, to make arrangements for one or more of the non-defaulting Underwriters, or any other underwriters, to purchase all, but not less than all, of the Defaulted Securities in such amounts as may be agreed upon and upon the terms herein set forth; if, however, the Representative shall not have completed such arrangements within such 24-hour period, then:
(i) if the number of Defaulted Securities does not exceed 10% of the number of Securities to be purchased on such date, each of the non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated, severally and not jointly, to purchase the full amount thereof in the proportions that their respective underwriting obligations hereunder bear to the underwriting obligations of all non-defaulting Underwriters, or
33
(ii) if the number of Defaulted Securities exceeds 10% of the number of Securities to be purchased on such date, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter.
No action taken pursuant to this Section 10 shall relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of its default.
In the event of any such default which does not result in a termination of this Agreement, either the (i) Representative or (ii) the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Time for a period not exceeding seven days in order to effect any required changes in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements. As used herein, the term “Underwriter” includes any person substituted for an Underwriter under this Section 10.
SECTION 11. Notices. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given if mailed or transmitted by any standard form of telecommunication. Notices to the Underwriters shall be directed to Leerink Partners at 1301 Avenue of the Americas, 5th Floor, New York, New York, 10019, attention of Stuart R. Nayman, with a copy, which shall not constitute notice, to Covington & Burling LLP at 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, attention of Brian K. Rosenzweig.
SECTION 12. No Advisory or Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (a) the purchase and sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement, including the determination of the offering price of the Securities and any related discounts and commissions, is an arm’s-length commercial transaction between the Company, on the one hand, and the several Underwriters, on the other hand, (b) in connection with the offering of the Securities and the process leading thereto, each Underwriter is and has been acting solely as a principal and is not the agent or fiduciary of the Company, any of its Subsidiaries or their respective shareholders, creditors, employees or any other party, (c) no Underwriter has assumed or will assume an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the Company with respect to the offering of the Securities or the process leading thereto (irrespective of whether such Underwriter has advised or is currently advising the Company or any of its Subsidiaries on other matters) and no Underwriter has any obligation to the Company with respect to the offering of the Securities except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement, (d) the Underwriters and their respective affiliates may be engaged in a broad range of transactions that involve interests that differ from those of the Company and (e) the Underwriters have not provided any legal, accounting, regulatory or tax advice with respect to the offering of the Securities and the Company has consulted its own respective legal, accounting, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent it deemed appropriate.
SECTION 13. Recognition of the U.S. Special Resolution Regimes. In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
34
For purposes of this Agreement, (A) “BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k); (B) “Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b); (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b); (C) “Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable; and (D) “U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
SECTION 14. Parties. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Underwriters and the Company and their respective successors. Nothing expressed or mentioned in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any person, firm or corporation, other than the Underwriters and the Company and their respective successors and the controlling persons and officers and directors referred to in Sections 6 and 7 and their heirs and legal representatives, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. This Agreement and all conditions and provisions hereof are intended to be for the sole and exclusive benefit of the Underwriters and the Company and their respective successors, and said controlling persons and officers and directors and their heirs and legal representatives, and for the benefit of no other person, firm or corporation. No purchaser of Securities from any Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor by reason merely of such purchase.
SECTION 15. Waiver of Trial by Jury. The Company (on its behalf and, to the extent permitted by applicable law, on behalf of its shareholders and affiliates) and each of the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.
SECTION 16. GOVERNING LAW. THIS AGREEMENT AND ANY CLAIM, CONTROVERSY OR DISPUTE ARISING UNDER OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF, THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO ITS CHOICE OF LAW PROVISIONS.
SECTION 17. Consent to Jurisdiction; Waiver of Immunity. Any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby shall be instituted in (i) the federal courts of the United States of America located in the City and County of New York, Borough of Manhattan or (ii) the courts of the State of New York located in the City and County of New York, Borough of Manhattan (collectively, the “Specified Courts”), and each party irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction (except for proceedings instituted in regard to the enforcement of a judgment of any such court, as to which such jurisdiction is non-exclusive) of such courts in any such suit, action or proceeding. The Company hereby appoints I-Mab Biopharma US Ltd., with offices at 2440 Research Boulevard, Suite 400, Rockville, Maryland 20580, as its agent for service of process in any suit, action or proceeding and agrees that service of process in any such suit, action or proceeding may be made upon it at the office of such agent. The Company represents and warrants that such agent has agreed to act as the Company’s agent for service of process, and the Company agrees to take any and all action, including the filing of any and all documents and instruments, that may be necessary to continue such appointment in full force and effect. In the event that I-Mab Biopharma US Ltd. is unable to serve as such agent, the Company hereby agrees to maintain the uninterrupted designation of an authorized agent upon whom process may be served in any such suit, action or proceeding and agrees to notify the Underwriters of the name and address of any such future authorized agent. Service of any process, summons, notice or document by mail to such party’s address set forth above shall be effective service of process for any suit, action or other proceeding
35
brought in any such court. The parties irrevocably and unconditionally waive any objection to the laying of venue of any suit, action or other proceeding in the Specified Courts and irrevocably and unconditionally waive and agree not to plead or claim in any such court that any such suit, action or other proceeding brought in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
SECTION 18. Currency Provisions. All payments made or deemed to be made by the Company under this Agreement, if any, will be made without withholding or deduction for or on account of any present or future taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges of whatever nature (other than taxes on net income) imposed or levied by or on behalf of the Cayman Islands or any political subdivision or any taxing authority thereof or therein unless the Company is or becomes required by law to withhold or deduct such taxes, duties, assessments or other governmental charges. In such event, the Company will pay such additional amounts as will result, after such withholding or deduction, in the receipt by the Underwriters and each Underwriter Indemnitee, as the case may be, of the amounts that would otherwise have been receivable in respect thereof.
SECTION 19. TIME. TIME SHALL BE OF THE ESSENCE OF THIS AGREEMENT. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE SET FORTH HEREIN, SPECIFIED TIMES OF DAY REFER TO NEW YORK CITY TIME.
SECTION 20. Partial Unenforceability. The invalidity or unenforceability of any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other Section, paragraph or provision hereof. If any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement is for any reason determined to be invalid or unenforceable, there shall be deemed to be made such minor changes (and only such minor changes) as are necessary to make it valid and enforceable.
SECTION 21. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts (which may include counterparts delivered by any standard form of telecommunication), each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same agreement. Counterparts may be delivered via facsimile, electronic mail (including any electronic signature covered by the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, the Electronic Signatures and Records Act or other applicable law, e.g., www.docusign.com) or other transmission method and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.
SECTION 22. Effect of Headings. The Section headings herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction hereof.
SECTION 23. Entire Agreement. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the Company and the Underwriters, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter hereof.
[SIGNATURE PAGES FOLLOW]
36
If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument, along with all counterparts, will become a binding agreement among the Underwriters and the Company in accordance with its terms.
| Very truly yours, | ||
| I-MAB | ||
| By: | /s/ Sean Fu | |
| Name: Sean Fu | ||
| Title: Chief Executive Officer | ||
| CONFIRMED AND ACCEPTED | ||
| As of the date first above written: | ||
| LEERINK PARTNERS LLC | ||
| By: | /s/ Brian Swanson | |
| Name: Brian Swanson | ||
| Title: Senior Managing Director | ||
For itself and as Representative of the other Underwriters named in Schedule A hereto.
[SIGNATURE PAGE TO UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT]
SCHEDULE A
The offering price to investors per ADS shall be $1.95.
The purchase price per ADS to be paid by the several Underwriters shall be $1.8525, being an amount equal to the offering price to investors set forth above less $0.0975 per ADS.
| Name of Underwriter | Number of ADSs |
|||
| Leerink Partners LLC |
28,333,331 | |||
| BTIG, LLC |
3,333,333 | |||
| Lucid Capital Markets, LLC |
1,666,666 | |||
|
|
|
|||
| Total |
33,333,330 | |||
|
|
|
|||
SCHEDULE B-1
Pricing Terms
1. The Company is selling 33,333,330 ADSs representing an aggregate of 76,666,659 Ordinary Shares.
2. The initial offering price to investors per ADS shall be $1.95.
SCHEDULE B-2
Free Writing Prospectuses
None
SCHEDULE B-3
List of Written Testing-the-Waters Communications
None
Exhibit A
FORM OF LOCK-UP AGREEMENT
[●], 2025
Leerink Partners LLC
as Representative of the several Underwriters
c/o Leerink Partners LLC
1301 Avenue of the Americas, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10019
| Re: | Proposed Offering by I-Mab |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The undersigned, an officer and/or director of I-Mab, an exempted company incorporated with limited liability under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the “Company”), understands that Leerink Partners LLC (“Leerink Partners”) proposes to enter into an Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with the Company providing for the offering (the “Offering”) of the Company’s American Depositary Shares (the “ADSs”), each 10 ADSs representing 23 ordinary shares, $0.0001 par value per share (the “Ordinary Shares,” and together with the ADSs, the “Securities”). In recognition of the benefit that such an offering will confer upon the undersigned as an officer and/or a director of the Company, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the undersigned agrees with each underwriter to be named in the Underwriting Agreement (collectively, the “Underwriters”) that, during the period beginning on the date hereof and ending on the date that is 90 days from the date of the Underwriting Agreement (the “Lock-Up Period”), the undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of Leerink Partners, on behalf of the Underwriters, directly or indirectly, (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of, or otherwise dispose of or transfer any Securities or any securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for Securities (collectively, the “Lock-Up Securities”), whether now owned or hereafter acquired by the undersigned or with respect to which the undersigned has or hereafter acquires the power of disposition, including, without limitation, Securities or such other securities which may be deemed to be beneficially owned by the undersigned in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), or exercise any right with respect to the registration of any of the Lock-Up Securities, or file or cause to be filed any registration statement in connection therewith, under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), (ii) enter into any swap or any other agreement or any transaction that transfers, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, the economic consequence of ownership of the Lock-Up Securities, whether any such swap or any other agreement or any transaction is to be settled by delivery of Securities or other securities, in cash or otherwise, or (iii) publicly disclose the intention to do any of the foregoing.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and subject to the conditions below, the undersigned may transfer Lock-Up Securities without the prior written consent of Leerink Partners, provided, in each case, that (1) in the cases of clauses (i)-(v) below, Leerink Partners receives a signed lock-up agreement for the balance of the Lock-Up Period from each donee, trustee, distributee, or transferee, as the case may be, (2) any such transfer shall not involve a disposition for value, (3) except in the case of gifts pursuant to clause (i) below, such transfers are not required to be reported with the SEC on Form 4 in accordance with Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and (4) the undersigned does not otherwise voluntarily effect any public filing or report regarding such transfers (other than a filing on a Form 5 made after the expiration of the Lock-Up Period):
| (i) | as a bona fide gift or gifts; |
| (ii) | to any member of the immediate family of the undersigned or to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned (for purposes of this lock-up agreement, “immediate family” shall mean any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin); |
| (iii) | as a distribution or other transfer by a partnership to its partners or former partners or by a limited liability company to its members or former members or by a corporation to its stockholders or former stockholders or to any wholly-owned subsidiary of such corporation; |
| (iv) | to the undersigned’s affiliates or to any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by the undersigned; |
| (v) | by operation of law, including pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order or in connection with a divorce settlement; |
| (vi) | by will or intestate succession upon the death of the undersigned; or |
| (vii) | to the Company in satisfaction of any tax withholding obligation. |
Furthermore, no provision in this lock-up agreement shall be deemed to restrict or prohibit (1) the transfer of the undersigned’s Lock-Up Securities to the Company in connection with the termination of the undersigned’s services to the Company, provided that any filing under Section 16 of the Exchange Act made in connection with such transfer shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that the filing relates to the circumstances described in this clause (1); (2) the exercise or exchange by the undersigned of any option or warrant to acquire any Securities or options to purchase Securities, in each case for cash or on a “cashless” or “net exercise” basis, pursuant to any stock option, stock bonus or other stock plan or arrangement in existence as of the date of the Underwriting Agreement; provided, however, that the underlying Securities shall continue to be subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this lock-up agreement and that any filing under Section 16 of the Exchange Act made in connection with such exercise or exchange shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that (a) the filing relates to the circumstances described in this clause (2) and (b) no Securities were sold by the reporting person; (3) to the Company to satisfy tax withholding obligations in connection with the vesting or exercise of equity incentive awards or through a “sell to cover” transaction for the purpose of satisfying tax withholding obligations upon the issuance of stock awards or vesting of restricted stock units pursuant to the Company’s employee benefit plans disclosed in the Registration Statement on Form F-3 (No. 333-286954) or the documents incorporated by reference therein, provided that any required filing under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto the nature of such transfer; and (4) the transfer of Lock-Up Securities upon the completion of a bona fide third-party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction that is approved by the Company’s board of directors and made to all holders of the Company’s securities involving a change of control of the Company; provided, however, that in the event that such tender offer, merger, consolidation or other such transaction is not completed, such Lock-up Securities held by the undersigned shall remain subject to the restrictions on transfer set forth in this lock-up agreement.
-2-
Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, nothing herein shall prevent the undersigned from establishing a 10b5-1 trading plan that complies with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act (“10b5-1 Trading Plan”) or from amending an existing 10b5-1 Trading Plan so long as there are no sales of Lock-Up Securities under any such 10b5-1 Trading Plan during the Lock-Up Period; provided, however, that any public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act regarding the establishment or amendment of such 10b5-1 Trading Plan shall clearly disclose that no Securities shall be disposed by such plan during the duration of the Lock-Up Period.
The undersigned also agrees and consents to the entry of stop transfer instructions with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of the Lock-Up Securities except in compliance with the foregoing restrictions. This lock-up agreement shall automatically terminate, and the undersigned shall be released from the undersigned’s obligations hereunder, upon the earliest to occur, if any, of (i) prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, the Company advises Leerink Partners in writing that it has determined not to proceed with the Offering; (ii) the Underwriting Agreement is executed but is terminated prior to the closing of the Offering (other than the provisions thereof which survive termination), or (iii) August 30, 2025, in the event that the Underwriting Agreement has not been executed by such date.
With respect to the Offering and during the Lock-Up Period, the undersigned waives any registration rights relating to the registration under the Securities Act of the offer and sale of any Securities and/or any Lock-Up Securities owned either of record or beneficially by the undersigned, including any rights to receive notice of the Offering. The undersigned further agrees that, to the extent that the terms of this lock-up agreement conflict with or are in any way inconsistent with any prior investor rights agreement, registration rights agreement, market stand-off agreement or any other lock-up or similar agreement to which the undersigned and the Company may be a party, this lock-up agreement supersedes such prior agreement.
The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriters have not provided any recommendation or investment advice nor have the Underwriters solicited any action from the undersigned with respect to the Offering and the undersigned has consulted their own legal, accounting, financial, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent deemed appropriate.
This lock-up agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.
This lock-up agreement may be delivered via facsimile, electronic mail (including pdf or any electronic signature complying with the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, e.g., www.docusign.com or www.echosign.com) or other transmission method and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.
[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]
-3-
| Very truly yours, | ||
| Name of Security Holder (Print exact name) | ||
| By: |
| |
| Signature | ||
| If not signing in an individual capacity: | ||
|
| ||
| Name of Authorized Signatory (Print) | ||
|
| ||
| Title of Authorized Signatory (Print) | ||
| (indicate capacity of person signing if signing as custodian, trustee, or on behalf of an entity) | ||
[SIGNATURE PAGE TO LOCK-UP AGREEMENT]
Exhibit 5.1
|
Harney Westwood & Riegels 3501 The Center 99 Queen’s Road Central Hong Kong Tel: +852 5806 7800 Fax: +852 5806 7810 |
4 August 2025
067028.0001
I-Mab
2440 Research Boulevard, Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20850
United States
Dear Sir or Madam
I-Mab (the Company)
We are lawyers qualified to practise in the Cayman Islands and have acted as Cayman Islands legal advisers to the Company in connection with a registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-286954), including all amendments or supplements thereto (the Registration Statement, which term does not include any other document or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit or schedule thereto), filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) on 2 May 2025, relating to the registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, (the Securities Act), as amended to date, relating to the offering and sale of up to 33,333,330 American Depositary Shares (the ADSs), each ten ADSs representing twenty-three (23) ordinary shares of a par value of US$0.0001 each in the share capital of the Company (the Ordinary Shares) (the Offer Shares). In this opinion Companies Act means the Companies Act (Revised) of the Cayman Islands.
We are furnishing this opinion as Exhibit 5.1 to the Company’s Report on Form 6-K to be filed on the date hereof (the Form 6-K), which will be incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement.
For the purposes of giving this opinion, we have examined the Documents (as defined in Schedule 1). We have not examined any other documents, official or corporate records or external or internal registers and have not undertaken or been instructed to undertake any further enquiry or due diligence in relation to the transaction which is the subject of this opinion.
In giving this opinion we have relied upon the assumptions set out in Schedule 2 which we have not independently verified.
Based solely upon the foregoing examinations and assumptions and upon such searches as we have conducted and having regard to legal considerations which we deem relevant, and subject to the qualifications set out in Schedule 3, we are of the opinion that under the laws of the Cayman Islands:
| 1. | The Company is duly incorporated and validly existing as an exempted company with limited liability under the law of the Cayman Islands and, based on the Certificate of Good Standing (as defined in Schedule 1), is in good standing as at 30 July 2025. Pursuant to the Companies Act, a company is deemed to be in good standing if all fees and penalties under the Companies Act have been paid and the Registrar of Companies has no knowledge that the Company is in default under the Companies Act. |
| The British Virgin Islands is Harneys Hong Kong office’s main jurisdiction of practice. Jersey legal services are provided through a referral arrangement with Harneys (Jersey) which is an independently owned and controlled Jersey law firm. Resident Partners: M Chu | JP Engwirda | Y Fan | SG Gray | PM Kay | MW Kwok | IN Mann R Ng | ATC Ridgers | PJ Sephton |
Anguilla | Bermuda | British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands | Cyprus | Hong Kong | Jersey London | Luxembourg | Shanghai | Singapore harneys.com |
| 2. | The authorised share capital of the Company is US$80,000 divided into 800,000,000 ordinary shares of a par value of US$0.0001 each. |
| 3. | The allotment and issue of the Offer Shares have been duly authorised, and when allotted, issued and paid for as contemplated in the Registration Statement, the Offer Shares will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable (which term means when used herein that no further sums are required to be paid by the holders thereof in connection with the issue of such shares) upon (i) payment in full of the consideration as set out in the Registration Statement and in accordance with the terms set out in the Registration Statement and in accordance with the M&A, and (ii) the entry of the Offer Shares as fully paid on the register of members of the Company. |
This opinion is confined to the matters expressly opined on herein and given on the basis of the laws of the Cayman Islands as they are in force and applied by the Cayman Islands courts at the date of this opinion. We have made no investigation of, and express no opinion on, the laws of any other jurisdiction. Except as specifically stated herein, we express no opinion as to matters of fact.
In connection with the above opinion, we hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to the Form 6-K, which will be incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not thereby admit that we come within the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act, as amended or the Rules and Regulations of the Commission thereunder.
This opinion is limited to the matters referred to herein and shall not be construed as extending to any other matter or document not referred to herein.
This opinion shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the Cayman Islands.
| Yours faithfully |
| /s/ Harney Westwood & Riegels |
| Harney Westwood & Riegels |
2
SCHEDULE 1
List of Documents and Records Examined
| 1 | A copy of the certificate of incorporation of the Company dated 30 June 2016. |
| 2 | A copy of the certificate of incorporation on adoption of dual foreign name of the Company dated 27 June 2018. |
| 3 | A copy of the sixth amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of the Company adopted by a special resolution passed on 29 October 2019 and effective immediately prior to the completion of the initial public offering of the Company’s American Depositary Shares representing its Ordinary Shares (the M&A). |
| 4 | A copy of the register of directors and officers of the Company provided to us on 23 April 2025. |
| 5 | A certificate of good standing in respect of the Company dated 31 July 2025. |
Copies of 1 to 5 above have been provided to us by the Company (the Corporate Documents, and together with 6 to 8 below, the Documents).
| 6 | A copy of the executed written resolutions of the board of directors of the Company in April 2025 (the Resolutions). |
| 7 | A certificate issued by Sean Fu, being a director of the Company dated 31 July 2025, a copy of which is attached hereto (the Director’s Certificate). |
| 8 | The Registration Statement. |
3
SCHEDULE 2
Assumptions
| 1 | Authenticity of Documents. Copy documents or drafts of documents provided to us are true and complete copies of, or in the final forms of, the originals. All original Corporate Documents are authentic, all signatures, initials and seals are genuine, all copies of the Registration Statement are true and correct copies and the Registration Statement conform in every material respect to the latest drafts of the same produced to us and, where the Registration Statement have been provided to us in successive drafts marked-up to indicate changes to such documents, all such changes have been so indicated. |
| 2 | Corporate Documents. All matters required by law to be recorded in the Corporate Documents are so recorded, and all corporate minutes, resolutions, certificates, documents and records which we have reviewed are accurate and complete, and all facts expressed in or implied thereby are accurate and complete as at the date of the passing of the Resolutions. |
| 3 | No Steps to Wind-up. The directors and shareholders of the Company have not taken any steps to appoint a liquidator of the Company and no receiver has been appointed over any of the Company’s property or assets. |
| 4 | Resolutions. The Resolutions have been duly executed (and where by a corporate entity such execution has been duly authorised if so required) by or on behalf of each director, or by or on behalf of each shareholder in respect of the shareholder resolutions, and the signatures and initials thereon are those of a person or persons in whose name the Resolutions have been expressed to be signed. The Resolutions remain in full force and effect. |
| 5 | Unseen Documents. Save for the Documents provided to us there are no resolutions, agreements, documents or arrangements which materially affect, amend or vary the transactions envisaged in the Documents and, in particular, that the entry into and performance of the transactions contemplated under the Registration Statement will not cause any of the parties thereto to be in breach of any agreement or undertaking. |
| 6 | Constitutional Documents. The M&A is the latest memorandum and articles of association of the Company in effect as of the time of the opinion. |
| 7 | Director’s Certificate. The contents of the Director’s Certificate are true and accurate as at the date of this opinion and there is no information not contained in the Director’s Certificate that will in any way affect this opinion. |
4
SCHEDULE 3
Qualifications
| 1 | Foreign Statutes. We express no opinion in relation to provisions making reference to foreign statutes in the Registration Statement. |
| 2 | Commercial Terms. Except as specifically stated herein, we make no comment with respect to any representations and warranties which may be made by or with respect to the Company in any of the documents or instruments cited in this opinion or otherwise with respect to the commercial terms of the transactions the subject of this opinion. |
| 3 | Non-assessable. In this opinion the phrase non-assessable means, with respect to the issuance of shares, that a shareholder shall not, in respect of the relevant shares, have any obligation to make further contributions to the Company’s assets (except in exceptional circumstances, such as involving fraud, the establishment of an agency relationship or an illegal or improper purpose or other circumstances in which a court may be prepared to pierce or lift the corporate veil). |
| 4 | Register of members. Under the Companies Act, the register of members of a Cayman Islands company is by statute regarded as prima facie evidence of any matters which the Companies Act directs or authorises to be inserted therein. A third party interest in the shares in question would not appear. An entry in the register of members may yield to a court order for rectification (for example, in the event of fraud or manifest error). |
| 5 | Good Standing. The Company shall be deemed to be in good standing at any time if all fees (including annual filing fees) and penalties under the Companies Act have been paid and the Registrar of Companies has no knowledge that the Company is in default under the Companies Act (Revised) of the Cayman Islands. |
| 6 | Economic Substance. We have undertaken no enquiry and express no view as to the compliance of the Company with the International Tax Co-operation (Economic Substance) Act (Revised). |
5
Exhibit 99.1
I-Mab Announces Pricing of $65 Million Underwritten Offering of American Depositary Shares
ROCKVILLE, MD, August 1, 2025 (Globe Newswire) – I-Mab (NASDAQ: IMAB) (the Company), a U.S.-based, global biotech company, focused on the development of precision immuno-oncology agents for the treatment of cancer, today announced the pricing of an underwritten offering in the United States of 33,333,334 American Depositary Shares (ADSs) representing 76,666,668 ordinary shares at an offering price of $1.95 per ADS, for total gross proceeds of approximately $65 million. All of the ADSs to be sold in the offering will be offered by I-Mab. The offering is expected to close on August 5, 2025, subject to customary closing conditions.
The offering included participation from new and existing investors including Everest Medicines, Janus Henderson Investors, Adage Capital Partners LP and Exome Asset Management.
Leerink Partners is acting as the lead bookrunning manager. BTIG is acting as a bookrunning manager. Lucid Capital Markets is acting as lead manager.
The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering, together with its existing cash and cash equivalents, to fund ongoing clinical development of its pipeline product candidates, including a randomized Phase 2 trial of givastomig, a bispecific Claudin 18.2 x 4-1BB antibody, intended to have sufficient power and size to generate clinically meaningful progression-free survival (PFS) data by end of 2027, and for working capital and other general corporate purposes.
The ADSs are being offered pursuant to an effective F-3 shelf registration statement that was previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC). A prospectus supplement will be filed with the SEC and will be available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The offering will be made only by means of a written prospectus and prospectus supplement that form a part of the registration statement. Copies of the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained, when available, for free from Leerink Partners LLC, Attention: Syndicate Department, 53 State Street, 40th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02109, by telephone at (800) 808-7525, ext. 6105, or by email at syndicate@leerink.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.
About I-Mab
I-Mab (NASDAQ: IMAB) is a U.S.-based, global biotech company, focused on the development of precision immuno-oncology agents for the treatment of cancer. The Company’s differentiated pipeline is led by givastomig, a potential best-in-class, bispecific antibody (Claudin 18.2 x 4-1BB) designed to treat Claudin 18.2-positive gastric cancers. Givastomig conditionally activates T cells via the 4-1BB signaling pathway in the tumor microenvironment where Claudin 18.2 is expressed. Givastomig is being developed for first line metastatic gastric cancers, with additional potential in other solid tumors. In ongoing Phase 1 trials, givastomig has been observed to maintain strong tumor-binding and anti-tumor activity, attributable to a potential synergistic effect of proximal interaction with Claudin 18.2 and 4-1BB, while minimizing toxicities commonly seen with other 4-1BB agents.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will”, “expects”, “believes”, “designed to”, “anticipates”, “future”, “intends”, “plans”, “potential”, “estimates”, “confident”, and similar terms or the negative thereof. I-Mab may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the SEC, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about I-Mab’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, without limitation, statements regarding: completion of the offering and the terms thereof; the expected use of proceeds from the offering; and the Company’s pipeline and clinical development of I-Mab’s drug candidates, including givastomig. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in these forward-looking statements, including but not limited to the following: market conditions and failure of customary closing conditions; I-Mab’s ability to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of its drug candidates; the clinical results for its drug candidates, which may or may not support further development or New Drug Application/Biologics License Application (NDA/BLA) approval; the content and timing of decisions made by the relevant regulatory authorities regarding regulatory approval of I-Mab’s drug candidates; I-Mab’s ability to achieve commercial success for its drug candidates, if approved; I-Mab’s ability to obtain and maintain protection of intellectual property for its technology and drugs; I-Mab’s reliance on third parties to conduct drug development, manufacturing and other services; I-Mab’s limited operating history; I-Mab’s ability to obtain additional funding for operations and to complete the development and commercialization of its drug candidates; I-Mab’s expectations regarding the impact of data from ongoing and future clinical trials; and those risks more fully discussed in the “Risk Factors” section in I-Mab’s annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on April 3, 2025, as well as the discussions of potential risks, uncertainties, and other important factors in I-Mab’s subsequent filings with the SEC. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to I-Mab. I-Mab undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by law.
I-Mab Investor & Media Contacts
| PJ Kelleher |
| LifeSci Advisors |
| +1-617-430-7579 pkelleher@lifesciadvisors.com |
| IR@imabbio.com |