Volitionrx Ltd S-3, filed Sep 24, 2021
Volitionrx Ltd (VNRX)
As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 24, 2021
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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FORM S-3
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
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| VOLITIONRX LIMITED |
| (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) |
_________________________
| Delaware |
| 91-1949078 |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
| (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
| 13215 Bee Cave Parkway Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B Austin, Texas 78738 +1 (646) 650-1351 |
| (Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices) |
_________________________
| Agents and Corporations, Inc. |
| 1201 Orange Street, Suite 600 |
| Wilmington, DE 19801 |
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
_________________________
Copies to:
Marc G. Alcser, Esq.
Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C.
660 Newport Center Drive, Suite 1600
Newport Beach, California 92660
(949) 725-4000
_________________________
| From time to time after this Registration Statement becomes effective. |
(Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public)
_________________________
If the only securities being registered on this Form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box. ☐
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act, other than securities offered only in connection with dividend or interest reinvestment plans, check the following box. ☒
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.D. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.D. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ |
| Non-accelerated filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ |
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| Emerging growth company | ☐ |
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
| Title of Each Class of Securities to be Registered |
| Amount to be |
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| Proposed Maximum Offering Price Per Unit(1) |
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| Proposed Maximum |
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| Amount of |
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| Common stock, $0.001 par value per share(2) |
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| Warrants(3) |
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| — |
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| Units(5) |
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| — |
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| Total |
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| $ | 100,000,000 |
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| $ | 10,910(6) | |
| (1) | Pursuant to General Instruction II.D of Form S-3, the table lists each class of securities being registered and the aggregate proceeds to be raised in the offering, but does not specify by each class information as to the amount to be registered, the proposed maximum offering price per security or the proposed maximum aggregate offering price. Any securities registered hereunder for the offering may be sold separately or together in combination with other securities registered hereunder for the offering. Any securities registered hereunder may be sold separately or as units with any other securities registered hereunder. In no event will the aggregate offering price of all securities issued from time to time in the offering pursuant to this registration statement exceed $100,000,000, inclusive of any exercise price thereof. Pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, the shares being registered hereunder also include such indeterminate number of shares of our common stock as may be issued from time to time with respect to the shares being registered hereunder as a result of stock splits, stock dividends or similar transactions.
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| (2) | Subject to Note 1 above, there is being registered hereunder an indeterminate number of shares of our common stock as may from time to time be sold hereunder. In addition, pursuant to Rule 457(i) under the Securities Act, the shares being registered hereunder include an indeterminate number of shares of our common stock as may be issued from time to time upon exercise or exchange of the securities issued directly hereunder. No separate consideration will be received for any shares of our common stock so issued upon exchange.
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| (3) | Subject to Note 1 above, there is being registered hereunder an indeterminate number of warrants to purchase shares of our common stock.
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| (4) | Calculated pursuant to Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act based on the proposed maximum aggregate offering price of all securities listed.
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| (5) | Each unit will represent an interest in two or more securities, which may or may not be separable from one another.
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| (6) | Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the securities registered pursuant to this Registration Statement include unsold securities previously registered by the Registrant on a Registration Statement on Form S-3, File No. 333-227248, initially declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, on September 28, 2018, or the Prior Registration Statement. The Prior Registration Statement registered the offer and sale of an indeterminate number of shares of common stock and preferred stock and an indeterminate number of warrants to purchase common stock or preferred stock, or, collectively, the Shelf Securities, having an aggregate maximum offering price of $100,000,000, $54,694,529.62 of which Shelf Securities remain unsold as of the date of filing of this Registration Statement, or the Unsold Shelf Securities. The Registrant has determined to include in this Registration Statement the Unsold Shelf Securities (excluding shares of preferred stock) under the Prior Registration Statement. Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the filing fee relating to the Unsold Shelf Securities under the Prior Registration Statement, which was paid under the Prior Registration Statement, will continue to be applied to the Unsold Shelf Securities registered pursuant to this Registration Statement. The Registrant is also registering new securities on this registration statement with an aggregate maximum offering price of $45,305,470.38, which aggregate maximum offering price is not specified as to each class of security (see Note 1 above). Accordingly, the filing fee of $4,943.00 being paid herewith relates to the newly registered securities. In accordance with Rule 415(a)(5) and Rule 415(a)(6), the Registrant may continue to offer and sell the securities covered by the existing registration statement during the grace period afforded by Rule 415(a)(5).To the extent that, after the filing date hereof and prior to effectiveness of this Registration Statement, the Registrant sells any Unsold Shelf Securities under the Prior Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6), the Registrant will identify in a pre-effective amendment to this Registration Statement the updated amount of Unsold Shelf Securities from the Prior Registration Statement to be included in this registration statement pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) and the updated amount of securities to be registered on this Registration Statement, if any. Pursuant to Rule 415(a)(6) under the Securities Act, the offering of the Unsold Shelf Securities under the Prior Registration Statement will be deemed terminated as of the date of effectiveness of this Registration Statement. |
THE REGISTRANT HEREBY AMENDS THIS REGISTRATION STATEMENT ON SUCH DATE OR DATES AS MAY BE NECESSARY TO DELAY ITS EFFECTIVE DATE UNTIL THE REGISTRANT SHALL FILE A FURTHER AMENDMENT WHICH SPECIFICALLY STATES THAT THIS REGISTRATION STATEMENT SHALL THEREAFTER BECOME EFFECTIVE IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 8(A) OF THE SECURITIES ACT OR UNTIL THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT SHALL BECOME EFFECTIVE ON SUCH DATE AS THE SEC, ACTING PURSUANT TO SAID SECTION 8(A), MAY DETERMINE.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
This registration statement contains two prospectuses:
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| • | a base prospectus, which covers the offering, issuance and sale of up to $100,000,000 of our common stock, warrants and units; and |
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| • | a prospectus supplement relating to the offer and sale of up to $25,000,000 of our common stock pursuant to an equity distribution agreement with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., or Cantor, and Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., or Oppenheimer. |
The base prospectus immediately follows this explanatory note. The specific terms of any additional securities to be offered pursuant to the base prospectus will be specified in a subsequent prospectus supplement to the base prospectus. The prospectus supplement with respect to the equity distribution agreement immediately follows the base prospectus. The prospectus supplement relates to a new equity distribution agreement we entered into with Cantor and Oppenheimer, dated September 24, 2021, and is unrelated to the previous equity distribution agreement among such parties or prior equity distribution agreement prospectus supplement. The shares of common stock that may be offered, issued and sold under the prospectus supplement contained in this registration statement and relating to the September 24, 2021 equity distribution agreement are included in the $100,000,000 of securities that may be offered, issued and sold by us under the base prospectus. Upon termination of the equity distribution agreement, any portion of the $25,000,000 included in the prospectus supplement that is not sold pursuant to the equity distribution agreement will be available for sale in other offerings pursuant to the base prospectus.
The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED SEPTEMBER 24, 2021
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$100,000,000
VOLITIONRX LIMITED
Common Stock
Warrants
Units
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We may offer and sell, from time to time in one or more offerings, any combination of common stock, warrants exercisable for shares of our common stock, or units having an aggregate initial offering price not to exceed $100,000,000. The units may consist of any combination of securities described in this prospectus.
This prospectus provides a general description of the securities we may offer. We will provide you with the specific terms of any offering in one or more supplements to this prospectus. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information in this prospectus. You should read this prospectus and any prospectus supplement, as well as the documents incorporated by reference or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein or therein, carefully before you invest in any of the securities offered pursuant to this prospectus. This prospectus may not be used to offer or sell our securities unless accompanied by a prospectus supplement relating to the offered securities.
These securities may be sold directly by us, through dealers or agents designated from time to time, to or through underwriters or dealers or through a combination of these methods on a continuous or delayed basis. For additional information on the methods of sale, you should refer to the section entitled “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus. We will describe the plan of distribution for any particular offering of our securities in a prospectus supplement. If any agents, underwriters or dealers are involved in the sale of any securities with respect to which this prospectus is being delivered, we will set forth in a prospectus supplement the names of such agents, underwriters or dealers and any applicable fees, commissions, discounts and over-allotment options. We will also set forth in a prospectus supplement the price to the public of such securities and the net proceeds that we expect to receive from such sale.
Our common stock is currently quoted on the NYSE American market under the symbol “VNRX”. On September 22, 2021, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the NYSE American market was $3.13 per share.
INVESTING IN THE SECURITIES WE MAY OFFER INVOLVES VARIOUS RISKS. WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU READ CAREFULLY THE RISKS WE DESCRIBE IN THIS PROSPECTUS AS WELL AS IN ANY ACCOMPANYING PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT AND THE RISK FACTORS IN OUR MOST CURRENT REPORTS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, FOR A FULLER UNDERSTANDING OF THE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES THAT WE FACE. SEE THE SECTION ENTITLED “RISK FACTORS” ON PAGE 3.
NEITHER THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION NOR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED OF THESE SECURITIES OR PASSED UPON THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS PROSPECTUS. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
The date of this prospectus is , 2021
| PROSPECTUS |
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This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, using a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may from time to time offer and sell any combination of the securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings with an aggregate initial offering price not to exceed $100,000,000. We have provided to you in this prospectus a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we sell any of our securities under this prospectus, we will, to the extent required by law, provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of the offering.
We may add, update or change any of the information contained in this prospectus or in any accompanying prospectus supplement we may authorize to be delivered to you. To the extent there is a conflict between the information contained in this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement, you should rely on the information in the prospectus supplement, provided that if any statement in one of these documents is inconsistent with a statement in another document having a later date – for example, a document incorporated by reference in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement – the statement in the document having the later date shall modify or supersede such earlier statement. Any statement so modified will be deemed to constitute a part of this prospectus only as so modified, and any statement so superseded will be deemed not to constitute a part of this prospectus. This prospectus, together with any accompanying prospectus supplement, includes all material information relating to an offering pursuant to this registration statement.
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus, in any accompanying prospectus supplement, or in any document incorporated by reference herein or therein. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with any different information. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may provide to you. The information contained in this prospectus, in any applicable prospectus supplement, and in the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein is accurate only as of the date such information is presented. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects may have changed since those respective dates.
We further note that the representations, warranties and covenants made by us in any agreement that is filed as an exhibit to any document that is incorporated by reference herein were made solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, including, in some cases, for the purpose of allocating risk among the parties to such agreements, and should not be deemed to be a representation, warranty or covenant to you. Moreover, such representations, warranties or covenants were accurate only as of the date when made. Accordingly, such representations, warranties and covenants should not be relied on as accurately representing the current state of our affairs.
This prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities other than the registered securities to which they relate, nor does this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation in such jurisdiction. This prospectus may not be used to offer or sell our securities unless accompanied by a prospectus supplement relating to the offered securities.
This prospectus does not contain all of the information included in the registration statement. For a more complete understanding of the offering of the securities, you should refer to the registration statement, including its exhibits. The registration statement containing this prospectus, including the exhibits to the registration statement, provides additional information about us and the securities offered pursuant to this prospectus. The registration statement, including the exhibits, can be read on the SEC’s website or at the SEC’s offices mentioned under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”
We may sell the securities to or through underwriters, dealers or agents or directly to purchasers. We and our agents reserve the sole right to accept or reject in whole or in part any proposed purchase of securities. The prospectus supplement, which we will provide to you each time we offer securities, will set forth the names of any underwriters, dealers or agents involved in the sale of the securities, and any applicable fee, commission or discount arrangements with them. See “Plan of Distribution.”
Unless we state otherwise or the context indicates otherwise, references to the “Company”, “VolitionRx”, “we”, “us”, and “our” in this prospectus refer to VolitionRx Limited and its subsidiaries. Our fiscal year ends on December 31 of each calendar year. NucleosomicsTM, and Nu.Q® and their respective logos are trademarks and/or service marks of VolitionRx Limited and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names referred to in this prospectus are the property of their respective owners. Additionally, unless otherwise specified, all references to “$” refer to the legal currency of the United States of America.
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This summary highlights selected information that is presented in greater detail elsewhere in this prospectus or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. Because it is only a summary, it does not contain all of the information you should consider before investing in our securities, and it is qualified in its entirety by, and should be read in conjunction with, the more detailed information included elsewhere in this prospectus. Before you decide whether to purchase our securities, you should read this entire prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus carefully, including the risks of investing in our securities discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” contained in the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, and under similar headings in the other documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus. You should also carefully read the information incorporated by reference into this prospectus, including our financial statements, and the exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.
Overview
We are a multi-national epigenetics company that applies our NucleosomicsTM platform through our subsidiaries to develop simple, easy to use, cost-effective blood tests to help diagnose a range of cancers and some other diseases, including sepsis and COVID-19, that are associated with the presence in the blood of networks of fibers released from activated neutrophils, a phenomenon known as NETosis. We hope that through earlier diagnosis we can help save and improve the quality of human and animals' lives throughout the world.
Our assays are based on the science of NucleosomicsTM, which is the practice of identifying and measuring nucleosomes in the bloodstream or other bodily fluid, since changes in these parameters are an indication that disease is present.
Our approach is to investigate the epigenetic structure of chromatin and nucleosomes rather than investigating only the DNA sequence. We are continuously developing new technologies including:
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| · | A suite of low cost Nu.Q® immunoassays that can accurately measure nucleosomes containing numerous epigenetic signals or structures, now being developed on a range of different enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, or ELISA, platforms. |
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| · | Nu.Q® Capture technology to isolate or enrich nucleosomes containing particular epigenetic signals or structures for a wide range of potential scientific and medical applications, e.g., the enrichment of nucleosomes of tumor origin in blood samples taken from cancer patients. |
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| · | The production of synthetic (recombinant) nucleosomes, containing exact defined epigenetic signals and structures, which is now in-house. These nucleosomes are used to ensure maximal accuracy of Nu.Q® immunoassay tests but also have many other applications including Research Use Only, or RUO, kits and as tools in epigenetic drug development. |
We have also developed the use of the Nu.Q® technology in veterinary applications and launched its first product, the Nu.Q® Vet Cancer Screening Test, in the fourth quarter of 2020. We are in the process of developing additional veterinary products, including a treatment monitoring test, a disease recurrence test and a point-of-care platform. Our extensive intellectual property portfolio includes the coverage of veterinary applications.
Corporate Information
We are a Delaware corporation. Our executive offices are located at 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, and our telephone number is +1 (646) 650-1351. We maintain a website at www.volition.com. Our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to such reports are available to you free of charge through the Investors section of www.volition.com as soon as practicable after such materials have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. The information contained on or accessed through our website is not incorporated by reference into this prospectus, and you should not consider information contained on our website to be a part of this prospectus or in deciding whether to purchase our securities. We have included our website address only as an inactive textual reference and do not intend it to be an active link to our website.
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Before making an investment decision, you should carefully consider the risks described under “Risk Factors” in the applicable prospectus supplement and in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, or any updates in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, together with all of the other information appearing in this prospectus or incorporated by reference into this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement, in light of your particular investment objectives and financial circumstances. The risks so described are not the only risks facing our company. Additional risks not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business operations. Our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected by any of these risks. The trading price of our securities could decline due to any of these risks, and you may lose all or part of your investment. For more information, see the information included under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
This prospectus, any accompanying prospectus supplement, and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, include forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this prospectus, any accompanying prospectus supplement, or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein, including statements regarding estimates, future events, our future financial performance, business strategy and plans and objectives of management for future operations, including with respect to us specifically and the cancer diagnostics industry in general, are forward-looking statements. We have attempted to identify estimates and forward-looking statements by terminology including “aims,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “can,” “continue,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “goal,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “seeks,” “should,” “suggests,” “targets” or “will” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Although we do not make estimates or forward-looking statements unless we believe we have a reasonable basis for doing so, we cannot guarantee their accuracy. Our estimates and forward-looking statements are based on our current assumptions and expectations about future events and trends, which affect or may affect our business, strategy, operations or financial performance. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause our or our industry’s actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to vary materially from those expressed or implied by these estimates and forward-looking statements.
Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences in results and outcomes include, but are not limited to, those discussed under the section entitled “Risk Factors” in this prospectus, any accompanying prospectus supplement, and in any documents incorporated by reference herein and therein. Readers should carefully review this information as well as other risks and uncertainties described in other filings with the SEC that we may make after the filing date of this prospectus. See the information included under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and it is not possible for us to predict all risk factors, nor can we address the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause our actual results to differ materially from those contained in any estimates or forward-looking statements. All estimates and forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made, and, except to the extent required by applicable law or regulation, we undertake no obligation to update or to review any estimate and/or forward-looking statement. In light of these risks and uncertainties, we cannot assure you that the estimates or forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus, any accompanying prospectus supplement, or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein, will in fact occur. You should not place undue reliance on these estimates and forward-looking statements.
We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.
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We intend to use the net proceeds we receive from the sale of our securities offered by us hereby for continued product development, clinical studies, product commercialization, working capital and other general corporate purposes, including potential strategic acquisitions.
We may set forth additional information regarding the use of proceeds from the sale of securities we offer under this prospectus in a prospectus supplement relating to the specific offering. We have not determined the amount of net proceeds to be used specifically for the foregoing purposes. As a result, our management will have broad discretion in the allocation of net proceeds.
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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES
We, directly or through agents, dealers or underwriters designated from time to time, may offer, issue and sell, together or separately, in one or more offerings, up to $100,000,000 in the aggregate, inclusive of any exercise price thereof, of:
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| · | shares of our common stock, par value $0.001 per share; |
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| · | warrants to purchase shares of our common stock; |
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| · | units comprised of one or more shares of common stock and warrants in any combination; or |
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| · | any combination of the foregoing, each on terms to be determined at the time of sale. |
The common stock, warrants and units are collectively referred to herein as the securities. This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we offer securities under this prospectus, we will, to the extent required by law, provide you with a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of the offering. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information in this prospectus. The securities involve various risks that we will describe in the section entitled “Risk Factors” that will be included in each prospectus supplement. For more details, see the information included under the heading “About this Prospectus.”
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The following is a summary of all material characteristics of our capital stock as set forth in our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws. This summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, copies of which have been filed as exhibits to our SEC filings. For more information, see “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Common Stock
We have authority under our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation to issue up to 100,000,000 shares of our common stock, par value $0.001 per share. As of September 22, 2021, there were 53,222,361 shares of our common stock issued and outstanding.
Holders of shares of our common stock are entitled to one vote per share held of record on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, including the election of directors. The holders are entitled to receive dividends when, as and if declared by our board of directors, in its discretion, out of funds legally available therefor. In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, the holders of our common stock are entitled to share ratably in all of our assets remaining after payment of liabilities. The holders of our common stock have no preemptive or other subscription rights, and there are no conversion rights or redemption or sinking fund provisions with respect to such shares. All of the outstanding shares of our common stock are, and the shares of our common stock when issued will be, fully-paid and nonassessable.
Registration Rights
Cotterford Company Limited, or Cotterford, is entitled to certain “piggy-back” registration rights where, if at any time, there is not an effective registration statement covering all of the Registrable Securities (as defined in the Cotterford Agreement) and we determine to prepare and file with the SEC a registration statement relating to an offering for our own account or the account of others, under the Securities Act, of any of our equity securities (subject to certain exceptions), Cotterford can require us to register its Registrable Securities (subject to cutbacks at the request of the underwriters, if applicable). These rights are provided under the terms of a Common Stock Purchase Agreement dated August 8, 2018, or the Cotterford Agreement. We generally must pay all expenses relating to any such registration, other than Cotterford’s counsel, broker’s commissions, discounts or fees and transfer taxes. These registration rights terminate automatically upon the earlier of the sale of the Registrable Securities and the date such registrable securities may be resold without volume or manner-of-sale limitations pursuant to Rule 144 under the Securities Act. The Registrable Securities were registered for resale pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-3, File No. 333-227731, initially declared effective by the SEC on October 15, 2018.
Anti-Takeover Effects of Delaware Law and Our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
Certain provisions of Delaware law, our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws could have the effect of delaying, deferring or discouraging another party from acquiring control of us. These provisions, which are summarized below, are expected to discourage certain types of coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids. These provisions are also designed, in part, to encourage persons seeking to acquire control of us to first negotiate with our board of directors. We believe that the benefits of increased protection of our potential ability to negotiate with an unfriendly or unsolicited acquirer outweigh the disadvantages of discouraging such proposals, including proposals that are priced above the then-current market value of our common stock, because, among other reasons, the negotiation of such proposals could result in an improvement of their terms.
Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws. Our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws include provisions that:
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| · | require that any action to be taken by our stockholders be effected at a duly-called annual or special meeting and not by written consent; |
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| · | specify that special meetings of our stockholders can be called only by the board of directors, the chairman of the board, or the chief executive officer (or the president if there is no chief executive officer); |
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| · | establish an advance notice procedure for stockholder approvals to be brought before an annual meeting of our stockholders, including proposed nominations of persons for election to the board of directors; |
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| · | provide that the number of directors on our board of directors is fixed exclusively by our board of directors; |
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| · | provide that vacancies on our board of directors may be filled only by a majority of directors then in office, even though less than a quorum; |
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| · | establish the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain derivative actions or proceeding brought on our behalf, any action asserting a claim of breach of fiduciary duty, any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, or the DGCL, or any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine; and |
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| · | provide that there is no right to cumulate votes with respect to any shares of capital stock. |
Delaware anti-takeover statute. We are subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the DGCL regulating corporate takeovers. In general, Section 203 prohibits a publicly-held Delaware corporation from engaging, under certain circumstances, in a business combination with an interested stockholder for a period of three years following the date the person became an interested stockholder unless:
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| · | prior to the date of the transaction, our board of directors approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder; |
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| · | upon completion of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding, but not the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder, (1) shares owned by persons who are directors and also officers and (2) shares owned by employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer; or |
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| · | at or subsequent to the date of the transaction, the business combination is approved by the board of directors of the corporation and authorized at an annual or special meeting of stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3 % of the outstanding voting stock which is not owned by the interested stockholder. |
Generally, a “business combination” includes a merger, asset or stock sale, or other transaction resulting in a financial benefit to the “interested stockholder” and an “interested stockholder” is a person who, together with affiliates and associates, owns or, within three years prior to the determination of interested stockholder status, did own 15% or more of a corporation’s outstanding voting stock. We expect the existence of this provision to have an anti-takeover effect with respect to transactions our board of directors does not approve in advance. We also anticipate that Section 203 may discourage business combinations or other attempts that might result in a premium over the market price for the shares of common stock held by our stockholders. The provisions of DGCL, our restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws could have the effect of discouraging others from attempting hostile takeovers and, as a consequence, they may also inhibit temporary fluctuations in the market price of our common stock that often result from actual or rumored hostile takeover attempts. These provisions may also have the effect of preventing changes in our management. It is possible that these provisions could make it more difficult to accomplish transactions that stockholders may otherwise deem to be in their best interests.
NYSE American Market
Our common stock is listed on the NYSE American market and traded under the symbol “VNRX.” On September 22, 2021, the last reported sale price for our common stock on the NYSE American market was $3.13 per share.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is VStock Transfer, LLC. The address of VStock Transfer, LLC is 18 Lafayette Place, Woodmere, New York 11598, and the telephone number is (212) 828-8436.
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We may offer, sell and issue, from time to time, warrants to purchase shares of our common stock. The warrants may be issued independently or together with shares of our common stock and may be attached to or separate from the shares of our common stock. If we issue warrants, they will be evidenced by warrant agreements or warrant certificates issued under one or more warrant agreements, which will be contracts between us and/or a bank or trust company, as warrant agent, and the holders of the warrants or an agent for the holders of the warrants, all as shall be set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to warrants being offered pursuant to such prospectus supplement. The forms of warrant agreements or warrant certificates, as applicable, relating to the warrants will be filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is part and/or will be incorporated by reference from reports that we file with the SEC.
The following summary of material provisions of the warrants and warrant agreements are subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all of the provisions of the warrant agreement and warrant certificate applicable to a particular series of warrants. We urge you to read the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as the complete warrant agreements and warrant certificates that contain the terms of the warrants.
Whenever warrants are to be issued and sold pursuant to this prospectus, we will file a prospectus supplement relating to that offer and sale which will specify (in each case as applicable):
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| · | the number of shares of common stock purchasable upon exercise of the warrants and the exercise price at which such number of shares may be purchased upon exercise; |
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| · | the price or prices at which the warrants will be issued; |
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| · | the provisions, if any, for changes to or adjustments in the exercise price; |
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| · | the provisions, if any, for call rights or put rights relating to the warrants or the underlying shares of common stock; |
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| · | the date on which the right to exercise the warrants shall commence and the date on which the right will expire; |
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| · | if applicable, the number of warrants issued with each share of our common stock; |
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| · | if applicable, the date on and after which the warrants and the related common stock will be separately transferable; and |
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| · | any other terms of the warrants, including terms, procedures and limitations relating to the exchange, exercise and settlement of the warrants. |
Until any warrants to purchase common stock are exercised, the holders of warrants will not be entitled, by virtue of being such holders, to vote, consent, receive dividends, receive notice as stockholders with respect to any meeting of stockholders for the election of our directors or any other matter, or to exercise any rights whatsoever as our stockholders.
Each warrant will entitle the holder to purchase for cash such shares of our common stock at such exercise price as shall be in each case be set forth in, or be determinable as set forth in, the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered thereby. Warrants may be exercised at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered thereby. After the close of business on the expiration date, unexercised warrants will become void.
The warrants may be exercised as set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered. Upon receipt of payment and the warrant certificate properly completed and duly executed at the Company or the corporate trust office of the warrant agent, as applicable, or any other office indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will, as soon as practicable, forward the shares of our common stock purchasable upon such exercise. If less than all of the warrants represented by such warrant certificate are exercised, a new warrant certificate will be issued for the remaining warrants.
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We may issue units comprised of one or more of the other securities described in this prospectus in any combination from time to time. Each unit will be issued so that the holder of the unit is also the holder of each security included in the unit. Thus, the holder of a unit will have the rights and obligations of a holder of each included security. If we issue units, they will be evidenced by unit agreements or unit certificates issued under one or more unit agreements, which will be contracts between us and the holders of the units or an agent for the holders of the units. The unit agreement under which a unit is issued may provide that the securities included in the unit may not be held or transferred separately, at any time or at any time before a specified date. The forms of unit agreements or unit certificates, as applicable, relating to the units will be filed as exhibits to the registration statement that includes this prospectus, or as an exhibit to a filing with the SEC that is incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
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We may sell our securities from time to time in any manner permitted by the Securities Act, including any one or more of the following ways:
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| · | to or through broker-dealers (acting as agent or principal); |
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| · | in a block trade; |
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| · | in ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which a broker solicits purchasers; |
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| · | in privately negotiated transactions; |
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| · | in “at the market” offerings, within the meaning of Rule 415(a)(4) of the Securities Act, to or through a market maker or into an existing trading market, on an exchange or otherwise; and/or |
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| · | directly to purchasers, through a specific bidding or auction process or otherwise. |
The securities may be sold at a fixed price or prices, which may be changed, at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices relating to the prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices.
Offers to purchase offered securities may be solicited by agents designated by us from time to time. Any agent involved in the offer or sale of the offered securities in respect of which this prospectus is delivered will be named, and any commissions payable by us will be set forth, in the applicable prospectus supplement. Unless otherwise set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, any agent will be acting on a reasonable best efforts basis for the period of its appointment. Any agent may be deemed to be an underwriter, as that term is defined in the Securities Act, of the offered securities so offered and sold.
We will set forth in a prospectus supplement the terms of the offering of our securities, including:
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| · | the name or names of any agents, underwriters or dealers; |
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| · | the purchase price of our securities being offered and the proceeds we will receive from the sale; |
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| · | any over-allotment options under which underwriters may purchase additional securities from us; |
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| · | any agency fees or underwriting discounts and commissions and other items constituting agents’ or underwriters’ compensation; |
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| · | the public offering price; |
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| · | any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers; and |
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| · | any securities exchanges on which such securities may be listed. |
If offered securities are sold to the public by means of an underwritten offering, either through underwriting syndicates represented by managing underwriters or directly by the managing underwriters, we will execute an underwriting agreement with an underwriter or underwriters, and the names of the specific managing underwriter or underwriters, as well as any other underwriters, will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. In addition, the terms of the transaction, including commissions, discounts and any other compensation of the underwriters and dealers, if any, will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, which prospectus supplement will be used by the underwriters to make resales of the offered securities. If underwriters are utilized in the sale of the offered securities, the offered securities will be acquired by the underwriters for their own account and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions, including:
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| · | transactions on the NYSE American market or any other organized market where the securities may be traded; |
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We may grant to the underwriters options to purchase additional offered securities to cover over-allotments, if any, at the public offering price with additional underwriting discounts or commissions, as may be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. If we grant any over-allotment option, the terms of the over-allotment option will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement.
We may authorize agents or underwriters to solicit offers by certain types of institutional investors to purchase securities from us at the public offering price set forth in the prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified date in the future. We will describe the conditions to these contracts and the commissions we must pay for solicitation of these contracts in the prospectus supplement.
We may indemnify agents, underwriters and dealers against specified liabilities, including liabilities incurred under the Securities Act, or to contribution by us to payments they may be required to make in respect of such liabilities. Agents, underwriters or dealers, or their respective affiliates, may be customers of, engage in transactions with or perform services for us or our respective affiliates, in the ordinary course of business.
Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, each class or series of securities will be a new issue with no established trading market, other than our common stock, which is traded on the NYSE American market. We may elect to list any other class or series of securities on any exchange and, in the case of our common stock, on any additional exchange. However, unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will not be obligated to do so. It is possible that one or more underwriters may make a market in a class or series of securities, but the underwriters will not be obligated to do so and may discontinue any market making at any time without notice. We cannot give any assurance as to the liquidity of the trading market for any of the offered securities.
Any underwriter may engage in over-allotment, stabilizing transactions, short-covering transactions and penalty bids in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Over-allotment involves sales in excess of the offering size, which create a short position. Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum price. Syndicate-covering or other short-covering transactions involve purchases of the securities, either through exercise of the over-allotment option or in the open market after the distribution is completed, to cover short positions. Penalty bids permit the underwriters to reclaim a selling concession from a dealer when the securities originally sold by the dealer are purchased in a stabilizing or covering transaction to cover short positions. Those activities may cause the price of the securities to be higher than it would otherwise be. If commenced, the underwriters may discontinue any of the activities at any time.
To comply with the securities laws of certain states, if applicable, the securities offered by this prospectus will be offered and sold in those states only through registered or licensed brokers or dealers.
In compliance with guidelines of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or FINRA, the maximum consideration or discount to be received by any FINRA member or independent broker dealer may not exceed 8% of the aggregate amount of the securities offered pursuant to this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement.
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Certain legal matters, including the validity of the issuance of the securities offered by this prospectus, will be passed on by Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, a Professional Corporation, Newport Beach, California.
The consolidated financial statements of VolitionRx Limited as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 and for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2020 have been incorporated by reference herein and in the registration statement in reliance upon the reports of Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC, our independent registered public accountant, incorporated by reference herein, and upon the authority of said firm as experts in accounting and auditing. The report of Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC dated March 22, 2021 notes that our net losses since inception and accumulation of a significant deficit raise substantial doubt that we will be able to continue as a going concern without further financing.
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INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate” into this prospectus information that we file with the SEC in other documents. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring to other documents that contain that information. Any information that we incorporate by reference into this prospectus is considered part of this prospectus.
Information contained in this prospectus and information that we file with the SEC in the future and incorporate by reference in this prospectus automatically modifies and supersedes previously filed information, including information in previously filed documents or reports that have been incorporated by reference in this prospectus, to the extent the new information differs from or is inconsistent with the old information. Any statement so modified will be deemed to constitute a part of this prospectus only as so modified, and any statement so superseded will be deemed not to constitute a part of this prospectus. For more information, see “About this Prospectus.”
We incorporate by reference, as of their respective dates of filing, the documents listed below that we have filed with the SEC and any additional documents that we may file in the future with the SEC pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, including any documents filed after the date on which the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part is initially filed until the offering of the security covered by this prospectus has been completed, other than, in each case, documents or information deemed to have been “furnished” and not “filed” in accordance with SEC rules:
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| · | our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, as filed with the SEC on March 22, 2021; |
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| · | our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarters ended March 31, 2021 and June 30, 2021, as filed with the SEC on May 11, 2021 and August 11, 2021, respectively; |
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| · | our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A, as filed with the SEC on April 29, 2021 (to the extent incorporated by reference into Part III of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020); |
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| · | our Current Reports on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on each of January 15, 2021, February 2, 2021, February 9, 2021, February 12, 2021, March 29, 2021 and June 22, 2021; and |
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| · | the description of our common stock contained in our registration statement on Form 8-A, as filed with the SEC on February 3, 2015, Exhibit 4.1 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as filed with the SEC on February 20, 2020, and any other amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. |
We hereby undertake to provide without charge to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom this prospectus is delivered, upon written or oral request, a copy of any or all documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus, but not delivered with the prospectus, other than exhibits to such documents unless such exhibits are specifically incorporated by reference into this prospectus. To request such materials, please contact Mr. Rodney Rootsaert, our Corporate Secretary at c/o Corporate Secretary, VolitionRx Limited, 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738 by telephone at +1 (646) 650-1351 or by email at notice@volition.com. These documents are also available free of charge through the investors section on our website at www.volition.com as soon as practicable after such materials have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC.
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus, in any accompanying prospectus supplement, or in any document incorporated by reference herein or therein. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with any different information. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may provide to you. The information contained in this prospectus, in any applicable prospectus supplement, and in the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein is accurate only as of the date such information is presented. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects may have changed since those respective dates.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We file annual, quarterly and current reports and other information with the SEC. Our filings with the SEC are available from the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, which contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically.
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus are part of a registration statement that we filed with the SEC. As permitted by SEC rules, this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus form a part of the registration statement, but do not contain all of the information that is included in the registration statement. The registration statement contains more information regarding us and our securities, including certain exhibits. You can obtain a copy of the registration statement from the SEC’s website.
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$100,000,000
VOLITIONRX LIMITED
Common Stock
Warrants
Units
PROSPECTUS
, 2021
The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED SEPTEMBER 24, 2021
Registration No. 333-
PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
(To Prospectus dated , 2021)
Up to $25,000,000
VOLITIONRX LIMITED
Common Stock
We have entered into an Equity Distribution Agreement, dated September 24, 2021, or the Distribution Agreement, with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., or Cantor, and Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., or Oppenheimer, relating to our common stock offered by this prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. In accordance with the terms of the Distribution Agreement, we may offer and sell our common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $25,000,000 from time to time through Cantor and Oppenheimer acting as our agents or principals.
This prospectus supplement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying prospectus, and is qualified by reference thereto, except to the extent that the information herein amends or supersedes the information contained in the accompanying prospectus. This prospectus supplement is not complete without, and may only be delivered or utilized in connection with, the accompanying prospectus, and any future amendments or supplements thereto.
Our common stock is listed on the NYSE American market and traded under the symbol “VNRX.” On September 22, 2021, the last reported sale price of our common stock as reported on the NYSE American market was $3.13 per share.
Sales of our common stock, if any, under this prospectus may be made in one or more sales, each deemed to be an “at the market” offering as defined in Rule 415(a)(4) promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act. Cantor and Oppenheimer, as designated agents, or the Designated Agents, are not required to sell any specific amount, but will use commercially reasonable efforts to sell on our behalf all of the shares requested to be sold by us, consistent with their normal trading and sales practices, on mutually agreed terms between the Designated Agents and us. There is no arrangement for funds to be received in any escrow, trust or similar arrangement.
The Designated Agents will be entitled to compensation at a fixed commission rate of up to 3.0% of the respective gross sales price per share sold through each of them as designated agents under the Distribution Agreement. In connection with the sale of our common stock on our behalf, the Designated Agents will be deemed to be “underwriters” within the meaning of the Securities Act and the compensation of the Designated Agents will be deemed to be underwriting commissions. We have also agreed to provide rights of indemnification and contribution to the Designated Agents with respect to certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. See “Plan of Distribution.”
INVESTING IN OUR COMMON STOCK INVOLVES A HIGH DEGREE OF RISK. YOU SHOULD REVIEW CAREFULLY THE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES DESCRIBED UNDER THE HEADING “RISK FACTORS” BEGINNING ON PAGE S-6 OF THIS PROSPECTUS AND PAGE 10 OF OUR ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2020, AS WELL AS THE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES DESCRIBED IN THE OTHER DOCUMENTS WE FILE WITH THE SEC.
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| Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of the securities being offered by this prospectus or accompanying prospectus, or determined if this prospectus or accompanying prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. |
__________________________
| Cantor |
| Oppenheimer & Co. |
| The date of this prospectus supplement is , 2021. |
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ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
This document is part of a registration statement that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, using a “shelf” registration process. Under the shelf registration statement, we may, from time to time, offer and sell, either individually or in combination, in one or more offerings shares of our common stock, warrants, or units, having an aggregate offering price of up to $100,000,000. Under this prospectus supplement, we may offer and sell shares of our common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $25,000,000 from time to time at prices and terms to be determining by market conditions at the time of offering.
Before you invest, you should carefully read this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, all information incorporated by reference herein and therein, as well as the additional information described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.” These documents contain information you should carefully consider when deciding whether to invest in our common stock.
This prospectus supplement may add, update or change information contained in the accompanying prospectus. To the extent there is a conflict between the information contained in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, you should rely on information contained in this prospectus supplement, provided that if any statement in, or incorporated by reference into, one of these documents is inconsistent with a statement in another document having a later date, the statement in the document having the later date modifies or supersedes the earlier statement. Any statement so modified will be deemed to constitute a part of this prospectus only as so modified, and any statement so superseded will be deemed not to constitute a part of this prospectus.
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, any document incorporated by reference herein, or any free writing prospectuses we may provide to you in connection with this offering. Neither we nor the Designated Agents have authorized anyone to provide you with any different information. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may provide to you. The information contained in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and in the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein, is accurate only as of the date such information is presented. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects may have changed since those respective dates.
We further note that the representations, warranties and covenants made by us in any agreement that is filed as an exhibit to any document that is incorporated by reference herein were made solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, including, in some cases, for the purpose of allocating risk among the parties to such agreements, and should not be deemed to be a representation, warranty or covenant to you. Moreover, such representations, warranties or covenants were accurate only as of the date when made. Accordingly, such representations, warranties and covenants should not be relied on as accurately representing the current state of our affairs.
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus do not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities other than the shares of common stock to which they relate, nor does this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation in such jurisdiction.
Unless otherwise indicated, information contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus concerning our industry and the markets in which we operate, including market opportunity, market position and competitive landscape, is based on information from our management’s estimates, as well as from industry publications, surveys and studies conducted by third parties. Management estimates are derived from publicly available information, our knowledge of our industry, and assumptions based on such information and knowledge, which we believe to be reasonable. In addition, while we believe that information contained in the industry publications, surveys and studies has been obtained from reliable sources, the accuracy and completeness of such information is not guaranteed, and we have not independently verified any of the data contained in these third-party sources.
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, including the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, include statements that are based on various assumptions and estimates that are subject to numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Some of these risks and uncertainties are described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” beginning on page S-6 of this prospectus supplement and in the section entitled “Risk Factors” starting on page 10 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, or our Annual Report, as well as the other documents we file with the SEC. These and other important factors could cause our future results to be materially different from the results expected as a result of, or implied by, these assumptions and estimates. You should read the information contained in, or incorporated by reference into, this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, completely and with the understanding that future results may be materially different from and worse than what we expect. See the information included under the heading “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information.”
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This prospectus does not contain all of the information included in the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. For a more complete understanding of the offering of the securities, you should refer to the registration statement, including its exhibits. The registration statement containing this prospectus supplement, including the exhibits to the registration statement, provides additional information about us and the securities offered pursuant to this prospectus supplement. The registration statement, including the exhibits, can be read on the SEC’s website or at the SEC’s offices mentioned under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Unless we state otherwise or the context indicates otherwise, references to the “Company,” “VolitionRx,” “Volition,” “we,” “us,” and “our” in this prospectus refer to VolitionRx Limited and its wholly owned subsidiaries, Singapore Volition Pte. Limited, Belgian Volition SRL, Volition Global Services SRL, Volition Diagnostics UK Limited, Volition America, Inc., and Volition Germany GmbH, and its majority-owned subsidiary Volition Veterinary Diagnostics Development LLC. Our fiscal year ends on December 31 of each calendar year. NucleosomicsTM and Nu.Q® and their respective logos are trademarks and/or service marks of VolitionRx and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names referred to in this prospectus are the property of their respective owners. Additionally, unless otherwise specified, all references to “$” refer to the legal currency of the United States of America.
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This prospectus supplement summary discusses the key aspects of the offering and highlights certain information appearing elsewhere in this prospectus supplement, in the accompanying prospectus, and in the documents we incorporate by reference herein and therein. However, as this is a summary, it does not contain all of the information you should consider before deciding to invest in our common stock. You are encouraged to carefully read this entire prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, including the information provided under the headings (i) “Risk Factors” in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus and in our Annual Report as well as in the other documents we file with the SEC, and (ii) “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” as well as our financial statements and the related notes thereto and the other documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus.
Overview
We are a multi-national epigenetics company that applies our NucleosomicsTM platform through our subsidiaries to develop simple, easy to use, cost-effective blood tests to help diagnose a range of cancers and some other diseases, including sepsis and COVID-19, that are associated with the presence in the blood of networks of fibers released from activated neutrophils, a phenomenon known as NETosis. We hope that through earlier diagnosis we can help save and improve the quality of human and animals' lives throughout the world.
Our assays are based on the science of NucleosomicsTM, which is the practice of identifying and measuring nucleosomes in the bloodstream or other bodily fluid, since changes in these parameters are an indication that disease is present.
Our approach is to investigate the epigenetic structure of chromatin and nucleosomes rather than investigating only the DNA sequence. We are continuously developing new technologies including: |
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| · | A suite of low cost Nu.Q® immunoassays that can accurately measure nucleosomes containing numerous epigenetic signals or structures, now being developed on a range of different enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, or ELISA, platforms. |
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| · | Nu.Q® Capture technology to isolate or enrich nucleosomes containing particular epigenetic signals or structures for a wide range of potential scientific and medical applications, e.g., the enrichment of nucleosomes of tumor origin in blood samples taken from cancer patients. |
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| · | The production of synthetic (recombinant) nucleosomes, containing exact defined epigenetic signals and structures, which is now in-house. These nucleosomes are used to ensure maximal accuracy of Nu.Q® immunoassay tests but also have many other applications including Research Use Only, or RUO, kits and as tools in epigenetic drug development. |
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| We have also developed the use of the Nu.Q® technology in veterinary applications and launched our first product, the Nu.Q® Vet Cancer Screening Test, in the fourth quarter of 2020. We are in the process of developing additional veterinary products, including a treatment monitoring test, a disease recurrence test and a point-of-care platform. Our extensive intellectual property portfolio includes the coverage of veterinary applications.
Corporate Information
We are a Delaware corporation. Our executive offices are located at 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, and our telephone number is +1 (646) 650-1351. We maintain a website at www.volition.com. Our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to such reports are available to you free of charge through the Investors section of www.volition.com as soon as practicable after such materials have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. The information contained on or accessed through our website is not incorporated by reference into this prospectus, and you should not consider information contained on our website to be a part of this prospectus or in deciding whether to purchase our securities. We have included our website address only as an inactive textual reference and do not intend it to be an active link to our website.
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| S-4 |
| Table of Contents |
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THE OFFERING |
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| Issuer:
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| VolitionRx Limited
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| Common Stock offered by us: |
| A number of shares of common stock resulting in aggregate gross proceeds to us of up to $25.0 million.
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| Common Stock to be outstanding after this offering: |
| Up to 61,131,302 shares of common stock, assuming sales of 7,987,220 shares of our common stock in this offering at an offering price of $3.13 per share, which was the last reported sale price of our common stock on the NYSE American market on September 22, 2021. The actual number of shares issued will vary depending on the sales price under this offering.
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| Manner of offering: |
| “At the market” offering that may be made from time to time by or through Cantor and Oppenheimer, acting as designated agents or as principals, or in privately negotiated transactions. See “Plan of Distribution” on page S-18.
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| Use of proceeds: |
| We intend to use the net proceeds from this offering for continued product development, clinical studies, product commercialization, working capital and other general corporate purposes, including potential strategic acquisitions. See the information included under the heading “Use of Proceeds” on page S-9.
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| Risk factors: |
| Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should review carefully the risks and uncertainties described under the heading “Risk Factors” beginning on page S-6 of this prospectus supplement and page 10 of our Annual Report, as well as the risks and uncertainties described in the other documents we file with the SEC.
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| NYSE American market symbol: |
| VNRX |
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| Unless otherwise indicated, the number of shares of our common stock to be outstanding immediately after this offering as shown above is based on 53,144,082 shares of our common stock outstanding as of June 30, 2021, but excluding the following as of such date: |
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| • | 4,040,985 shares of our common stock issuable upon the exercise of options under our 2011 Equity Incentive Plan and 2015 Stock Incentive Plan, having a weighted average exercise price of $3.99 per share, as of June 30, 2021; |
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| • | 485,000 shares of our common stock issuable upon the exercise of warrants having a weighted average exercise price of $3.88 per share, as of June 30, 2021; |
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| • | 206,250 restricted stock units outstanding as of June 30, 2021, having a weighted average price of $3.38 per share, under our 2015 Stock Incentive Plan; and |
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| • | an aggregate of 1,968,852 shares of our common stock reserved for future issuance as of June 30, 2021 under our 2015 Stock Incentive Plan.
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| S-5 |
| Table of Contents |
Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. Before making an investment decision, you should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information included in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and the information incorporated by reference herein and therein, including the risks described under the heading “Risk Factors” beginning on page 10 of our Annual Report, as well as in the other documents we file with the SEC.
If any of the risks described below, or incorporated by reference into this prospectus, actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects could suffer. In that case, the trading price of our common stock may decline and you may lose all or part of your investment. The risks and uncertainties we have described are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects. Certain statements below are forward-looking statements. See the information included under the heading “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information.”
Risks Related to this Offering
You may experience immediate and substantial dilution in the book value of your investment.
The offering price per share in this offering may exceed the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our common stock outstanding prior to this offering. Assuming that an aggregate of 7,987,220 shares of our common stock are sold at a price of $3.13 per share, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the NYSE American market on September 22, 2021, for aggregate gross proceeds of $25.0 million, and after deducting commissions and estimated aggregate offering expenses payable by us, you will experience immediate dilution of $2.30 per share, representing the difference between our pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value per share as of June 30, 2021 after giving effect to this offering and the assumed offering price. The exercise of outstanding stock options, warrants or the delivery of shares upon vesting of restricted stock units could result in further dilution of your investment.
Management will have broad discretion to determine how to use the funds raised in this offering, and may use them in ways that may not enhance our operating results or the price of our common stock.
Our management will have broad discretion over the use of proceeds from this offering, and we could spend the proceeds from this offering in ways our stockholders may not agree with or that do not yield a favorable return. We intend to use the net proceeds of this offering for continued product development, clinical studies, product commercialization, working capital and other general corporate purposes, including potential strategic acquisitions. However, our use of these proceeds may differ substantially from our current plans. If we do not invest or apply the proceeds of this offering in ways that improve our operating results, we may fail to achieve expected financial results, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flow, and which could cause our stock price to decline.
You may experience future dilution as a result of future equity offerings.
In order to raise additional capital, we may in the future offer additional shares of our common stock or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for our common stock at prices that may not be the same as the price per share paid by investors in this offering. We may sell shares or other securities in any other offering at a price per share that is less than the price per share paid by any investors in this offering, and investors purchasing shares or other securities in the future could have rights superior to existing stockholders. Notably, as of September 22, 2021, we have sold 395,048 shares of our common stock for gross proceeds of approximately $1.5 million under the prior equity distribution agreement we entered into with Cantor and Oppenheimer, dated November 12, 2020, and pursuant to Rule 415(a)(5) and Rule 415(a)(6), we may continue to offer and sell our common stock under the prior equity distribution agreement during the grace period afforded by Rule 415(a)(5). The price per share at which we sell additional shares of our common stock, or securities convertible or exchangeable into common stock, in future transactions may be higher or lower than the price per share paid by any investors in this offering.
Future sales of substantial amounts of our common stock, or the possibility that such sales could occur, could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.
We may issue up to $25.0 million of our common stock from time to time in this offering. The issuance from time to time of shares of our common stock in this offering, as well as the fact that we have the ability to issue such shares in this offering, could have the effect of depressing the market price or increasing the market price volatility of our common stock.
| S-6 |
| Table of Contents |
It is not possible to predict the actual number of shares of our common stock we will sell under the Distribution Agreement, or the gross proceeds resulting from those sales.
Subject to certain limitations in the Distribution Agreement and compliance with applicable law, we have the discretion to deliver a placement notice to the Designated Agents at any time throughout the term of the Distribution Agreement. The number of shares of our common stock that are sold through the Designated Agents after delivering a placement notice will fluctuate based on a number of factors, including the market price of our common stock during the sales period, the limits we set with the Designated Agents in any applicable placement notice, and the demand for our common stock during the sales period. Because the price per share of each share sold will fluctuate during this offering, it is not currently possible to predict the number of shares that will be sold or the gross proceeds to be raised in connection with those sales.
The common stock offered hereby may be sold in “at the market” offerings or in privately negotiated transactions, and investors who buy shares at different times will likely pay different prices.
Investors who purchase shares in this offering at different times will likely pay different prices, and so may experience different levels of dilution and different outcomes in their investment results. We will have discretion, subject to market demand, to vary the timing, prices, and numbers of shares sold in this offering. In addition, subject to the final determination by our board of directors, there is no minimum or maximum sales price for shares to be sold in this offering. Investors may experience a decline in the value of the shares they purchase in this offering as a result of sales made at prices lower than the prices they paid.
| S-7 |
| Table of Contents |
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
This prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. These forward-looking statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein, are forward-looking statements. Such statements are typically characterized by terminology such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate(s),” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “seek,” “should,” “strategy,” “will,” and similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements also include the assumptions underlying or relating to such statements. In particular, forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relate to, among other things, our future or assumed financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, business forecasts and plans, research and product development plans, manufacturing plans, strategic plans and objectives, capital needs and financing plans, product launches, regulatory approvals, competitive environment, and the application of accounting guidance. We caution you that the foregoing list may not include all of the forward-looking statements made in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus.
Our forward-looking statements are based on our management’s current assumptions and expectations about future events and trends, which affect or may affect our business, strategy, operations or financial performance. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, they are subject to numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are made in light of information currently available to us. Our actual financial condition and results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth in the section entitled “Risk Factors” beginning on page S-6 of this prospectus and page 10 of our Annual Report, as well as those described in the other documents we file with the SEC. You should read this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, completely and with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and worse than what we expect.
Some significant factors that may impact our estimates and forward-looking statements include:
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| · | Our inability to generate any significant revenue or achieve profitability; |
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| · | Our need to raise additional capital in the future; |
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| · | Our expectations to expand our product development, research and sales and marketing capabilities could give rise to difficulties in managing our growth; |
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| · | Our limited experience with direct sales and marketing; |
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| · | The material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting that we have identified; |
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| · | The possibility that we may not be able to continue to operate, as indicated by the “going concern” opinion from our auditors; |
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| · | Our ability to successfully develop, manufacture, market, and sell our future products; |
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| · | Our ability to timely obtain necessary regulatory clearances or approvals to distribute and market our future products; |
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| · | The acceptance by the marketplace of our future products; |
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| · | The highly competitive and rapidly changing nature of the cancer diagnostics market; |
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| · | Our reliance on third parties to manufacture and supply our intended products, and such manufacturers’ dependence on third party suppliers; |
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| · | Our dependence on third party distributors; |
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| · | Protection of our patents, intellectual property and trade secrets; and |
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| · | Business disruptions and economic and other uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. |
Moreover, we operate in an evolving environment. New risk factors and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible for our management to predict all risk factors and uncertainties, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made, and, except to the extent required by law or the rules of the NYSE American, we undertake no obligation to update or review any forward-looking statement because of new information, future events or other factors. You should, however, review the risks and uncertainties we describe in the reports we will file from time to time with the SEC, after the date of this prospectus supplement. See the information included under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”
Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. As a result of such risks and uncertainties, including those described above, the forward-looking statements discussed in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein might not occur and our future results and our performance may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements due to, but not limited to, the factors mentioned above. Because of these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements when making an investment decision.
| S-8 |
| Table of Contents |
We may issue and sell our common stock having aggregate gross proceeds of up to $25.0 million from time to time. Because there is no minimum offering amount required as a condition to close this offering, the actual total public offering amount, commissions and proceeds to us, if any, are not determinable at this time. We estimate that the net proceeds from the sale of our common stock that we are offering may be up to $24.1 million, after deducting the Designated Agents’ commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us.
We currently anticipate that we will use the net proceeds received by us for continued product development, clinical studies, product commercialization, working capital and other general corporate purposes, including potential strategic acquisitions. Our expected use of the net proceeds from this offering is based upon our present plans and business condition. As of the date of this prospectus, we cannot predict with certainty all of the particular uses for the net proceeds to be received upon the completion of this offering or the amounts that we will actually spend on the uses set forth above. The amounts and timing of our actual use of proceeds will vary depending on numerous factors, including the factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” beginning on page S-6 of this prospectus supplement and page 10 of our Annual Report, as well as the other documents we file with the SEC. As a result, management will retain broad discretion over the allocation of the net proceeds from this offering, and investors will be relying on the judgment of our management regarding the application of the net proceeds.
| S-9 |
| Table of Contents |
The following is a summary of all material characteristics of our common stock as set forth in our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws. This summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to our second amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, copies of which have been filed as exhibits to our SEC filings. For more information, see “Where You Can Find More Information.”
General
We may issue shares of our common stock from time to time. We are currently authorized to issue 100,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share.
As of September 22, 2021, there were 53,222,361 shares of our common stock outstanding.
Common Stock
Our common stock is listed on the NYSE American market and traded under the symbol “VNRX.” On September 22, 2021, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the NYSE American market was $3.13.
Holders of shares of our common stock are entitled to one vote per share held of record on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, including the election of directors. The holders are entitled to receive dividends when, as and if declared by our board of directors, in its discretion, out of funds legally available therefor. In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, the holders of our common stock are entitled to share ratably in all of our assets remaining after payment of liabilities. The holders of our common stock have no preemptive or other subscription rights, and there are no conversion rights or redemption or sinking fund provisions with respect to such shares. All of the outstanding shares of our common stock are, and the shares of our common stock when issued will be, fully paid and non-assessable.
The material terms of our common stock are further described under the heading “Description of Capital Stock” in the accompanying prospectus.
Holders
As of September 22, 2021, there were approximately 131 holders of record of our common stock. The actual number of holders of our common stock is greater than the number of record holders, and includes stockholders who are beneficial owners, but whose shares are held in street name by banks, brokers, dealers and other nominees. This number of holders of record also does not include stockholders whose shares may be held in trust by other entities.
| S-10 |
| Table of Contents |
We have not previously paid cash dividends on our common stock. It is our current intention to invest our cash flow and earnings in the growth of our business and, therefore, we have no plans to pay cash dividends for the foreseeable future. Investors should not purchase our common stock with the expectation of receiving cash dividends.
| S-11 |
| Table of Contents |
If you invest in our common stock in this offering, your ownership interest will be immediately diluted to the extent of the difference between the public offering price per share of our common stock and the “as-adjusted” net tangible book value per share of our common stock after this offering.
Net tangible book value per share of our common stock is determined by subtracting our total liabilities from the amount of our total tangible assets (total assets less intangible assets) and then dividing the difference by the number of shares of our common stock deemed to be outstanding at that date. As of June 30, 2021, we had a net tangible book value of $26.4 million, or $0.50 per share of common stock.
Investors purchasing in this offering will incur immediate and substantial dilution. After giving effect to the sale and issuance by us of our common stock in an amount equal to $25.0 million at an assumed price of $3.13 per share, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the NYSE American market on September 22, 2021, and after deducting commissions to the Designated Agents and estimated offering expenses payable by us, our as-adjusted net tangible book value as of June 30, 2021 would have been approximately $50.5 million, or approximately $0.83 per share.
This amount represents an immediate increase in as-adjusted net tangible book value of $0.33 per share to our existing stockholders and immediate dilution in as-adjusted net tangible book value of $2.30 per share to new investors purchasing shares in this offering. We determine dilution by subtracting the as-adjusted net tangible book value per share after this offering from the assumed public offering price per share paid by an investor in this offering.
The following table illustrates this dilution on a per share basis:
| Assumed public offering price per share |
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| $ | 3.13 |
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| Net tangible book value per share as of June 30, 2021 |
| $ | 0.50 |
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| Increase in as-adjusted net tangible book value per share attributable to this offering |
| $ | 0.33 |
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| As-adjusted net tangible book value per share after this offering |
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| $ | 0.83 |
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| Dilution per share to new investors purchasing in this offering |
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| $ | 2.30 |
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An increase of $0.50 per share in the price at which the shares are sold from the assumed public offering price of $3.13 per share shown in the table above, assuming all of our common stock in the aggregate amount of $25.0 million is sold at that price, would increase our as-adjusted net tangible book value per share after the offering to $0.84 per share, and would increase the dilution per share to new investors purchasing in this offering to $2.79 per share, after deducting commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. A decrease of $0.50 per share in the price at which the shares are sold from the assumed public offering price of $3.13 per share shown in the table above, assuming all of our common stock in the aggregate amount of $25.0 million is sold at that price, would decrease our as-adjusted net tangible book value per share after the offering to $0.81 per share, and would decrease the dilution per share to new investors purchasing in this offering to $1.82 per share, after deducting commissions and estimated aggregate offering expenses payable by us. This information is supplied for illustrative purposes only and may differ based on the actual offering price and the actual number of shares offered.
The above discussion and table are based on approximately 53,144,082 shares of our common stock outstanding as of June 30, 2021 and excludes the following:
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| · | 4,040,985 shares of our common stock issuable upon the exercise of options under our 2011 Equity Incentive Plan and 2015 Stock Incentive Plan, having a weighted average exercise price of $3.99 per share, as of June 30, 2021; |
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| · | 485,000 shares of our common stock issuable upon the exercise of warrants having a weighted average exercise price of $3.88 per share, as of June 30, 2021; |
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| · | 206,250 restricted stock units outstanding as of June 30, 2021, having a weighted average price of $3.38 per share, under our 2015 Stock Incentive Plan; and |
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| · | an aggregate of 1,968,852 shares of our common stock reserved for future issuance as of June 30, 2021 under our 2015 Stock Incentive Plan. |
| S-12 |
| Table of Contents |
CERTAIN U.S. FEDERAL TAX CONSIDERATIONS APPLICABLE TO HOLDERS OF COMMON STOCK
The following is a description of certain U.S. federal income and estate tax considerations related to the purchase, ownership and disposition of our common stock that are applicable to U.S. and non-U.S. holders (defined below).
This summary:
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| · | is intended only as a summary and is based on the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, U.S. federal tax regulations promulgated or proposed under it, or Treasury Regulations, judicial authority and published rulings and administrative pronouncements of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, each as of the date of this prospectus and each of which are subject to change at any time, possibly with retroactive effect; |
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| · | is applicable only to holders who hold the shares as “capital assets” within the meaning of section 1221 of the Code; |
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| · | does not discuss the applicability of any U.S. state or local taxes, non-U.S. taxes or any other U.S. federal tax except for U.S. federal income tax; |
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| · | does not address tax consequences under the laws of any state, local, or foreign jurisdiction, or any tax treaties or conventions between the United States and foreign jurisdictions, federal estate or gift tax consequences, or tax consequences under sections 280G and 4999 of the Code; |
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| · | this discussion is based upon current law and interpretational authorities that are subject to change at any time. The company strongly urges participants to consult with their tax advisor concerning the tax consequences of making an investment in our common stock with respect to their personal tax circumstances; and |
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| · | does not address all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation that may be relevant to holders in light of their particular circumstances including alternative minimum tax considerations or who are subject to special treatment under U.S. federal income tax laws, including but not limited to: |
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| · | certain former citizens and long-term residents of the United States; |
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| · | banks, financial institutions, or “financial services entities”; |
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| · | insurance companies; |
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| · | tax-exempt organizations; |
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| · | tax-qualified retirement and pension plans; |
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| · | brokers, dealers or traders in securities, commodities or currencies; |
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| · | persons subject to the alternative minimum tax; |
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| · | persons that own or have owned more than 5% of our common stock; |
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| · | persons who hold or receive our common stock pursuant to the exercise of any employee stock option or otherwise as compensation; |
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| · | investors holding our common stock as part of a “straddle,” “hedge,” “conversion transaction,” or other risk-reduction transaction; |
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| · | investors who are an integral part or controlled entities of a foreign sovereign, partnerships or other pass-through entities; |
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| · | real estate investment trusts and regulated investment companies; and |
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| · | “controlled foreign corporations” and “passive foreign investment companies.” |
| S-13 |
| Table of Contents |
This description constitutes neither tax nor legal advice. Prospective investors are urged to consult their own tax advisors to determine the specific tax consequences and risks to them of purchasing, holding and disposing of our common stock, including the application to their particular situations of any U.S. federal, state, local and non-U.S. tax laws and of any applicable income tax treaty.
Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations Applicable to U.S. Holders
U.S. Holder Defined
For purposes of this discussion, a U.S. holder is a beneficial owner of our common stock that is a “U.S. person” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A “U.S. person” is any of the following:
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| · | a citizen or resident of the United States for U.S. federal income tax purposes; |
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| · | a corporation, or other entity taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, that was created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or any state thereof or the District of Columbia; |
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| · | an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income tax regardless of its source; or |
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| · | a trust if (a) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over its administration and one or more U.S. persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust, or (b) the trust has a valid election in effect to be treated as a U.S. person. |
If a partnership (or an entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) owns our common stock, then the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a partner in that partnership, including a partner that is a U.S. person, generally will depend on the status of the partner and the partnership’s activities. Partners and partnerships should consult their own tax advisors with regard to the U.S. federal income tax treatment of an investment in our common stock.
Distributions to U.S. Holders
Distributions of cash or property, if any, paid to a U.S. holder of our common stock will constitute dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent paid from our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions made on our common stock that are treated as dividends generally will be included in your income as ordinary dividend income. With respect to noncorporate taxpayers, such dividends are generally taxed at reduced rates provided certain holding period requirements are satisfied.
Amounts not treated as dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes will constitute a return of capital and first be applied against and reduce a holder’s adjusted tax basis in its common stock, but not below zero. Any excess will be treated as capital gain and will be treated as described under the section titled “—Sale or Taxable Disposition of Common Stock by U.S. Holders” below.
Sale or Taxable Disposition of Common Stock by U.S. Holders
Upon the sale, exchange or disposition of our common stock, you generally will recognize capital gain or loss equal to the difference between (i) the amount of cash and the fair market value of any property received upon the sale or exchange and (ii) your adjusted tax basis in the common stock. Such capital gain or loss will be long-term capital gain or loss if your holding period in the common stock is more than one year at the time of the sale, exchange or disposition. Long-term capital gains recognized by certain noncorporate taxpayers will generally be subject to reduced rates of U.S. federal income tax. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations.
Medicare Contributions Tax
Certain U.S. holders who are individuals, estates or certain trusts must pay a 3.8% tax on the U.S. person’s “net investment income.” Net investment income generally includes, among other things, dividend income and net gains from the disposition of our common stock. A U.S. holder that is an individual, estate or trust should consult its tax advisor regarding the applicability of the Medicare tax to its income and gains in respect of its investment in our common stock.
| S-14 |
| Table of Contents |
Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations Applicable to Non-U.S. Holders
Non-U.S. Holder Defined
For purposes of this discussion, a non-U.S. holder is a beneficial owner of our common stock that is not a “U.S. holder” (as defined under the section titled “—U.S. Holder Defined” above).
If a partnership (or an entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) owns our common stock, then the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a partner, including a partner that is a non-U.S. person, in that partnership generally will depend on the status of the partner and the partnership’s activities. Partners and partnerships should consult their own tax advisors with regard to the U.S. federal income tax treatment of an investment in our common stock.
Distributions to Non-U.S. Holders
Distributions of cash or property, if any, paid to a non-U.S. holder of our common stock will constitute “dividends” for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes. If the amount of a distribution exceeds both our current and accumulated earnings and profits, such excess will first constitute a nontaxable return of capital, which will reduce the holder’s tax basis in our common stock, but not below zero. Any excess will be treated as gain from the sale of our common stock and will be treated as described under the section titled “—Sale or Taxable Disposition of Common Stock by Non-U.S. Holders” below.
Subject to the following paragraphs, dividends on our common stock generally will be subject to U.S. federal withholding tax at a 30% gross rate, subject to any exemption or lower rate as may be specified by an applicable income tax treaty. We may withhold up to 30% of either (i) the gross amount of the entire distribution, even if the amount of the distribution is greater than the amount constituting a dividend, as described above, or (ii) the amount of the distribution we project will be a dividend, based upon a reasonable estimate of both our current and our accumulated earnings and profits for the taxable year in which the distribution is made. If tax is withheld on the amount of a distribution in excess of the amount constituting a dividend, then you may obtain a refund of that excess amount by timely filing a claim for refund with the IRS. Any such distributions will also be subject to the discussion below under the section titled “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Considerations.”
To claim the benefit of a reduced rate of or an exemption from U.S. federal withholding tax under an applicable income tax treaty, a non-U.S. holder will be required (i) to satisfy certain certification requirements, which may be made by providing us or our agent with a properly executed and completed IRS Form W-8BEN (for individuals) or W-8BEN-E (for entities) certifying, under penalty of perjury, that the holder qualifies for treaty benefits and is not a U.S. person, or (ii) if our common stock is held through certain non-U.S. intermediaries, to satisfy the relevant certification requirements of the applicable Treasury Regulations. Special certification and other requirements apply to certain non-U.S. holders that are pass-through entities. Non-U.S. holders that do not timely provide us or our paying agent with the required certification, but that qualify for a reduced treaty rate, may obtain a refund of any excess amounts withheld by timely filing an appropriate claim for refund with the IRS. Non-U.S. holders should consult their tax advisors regarding their entitlement to benefits under an applicable income tax treaty.
Dividends that are effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business by the non-U.S. holder within the United States (and, if required by an applicable income tax treaty, are attributable to a permanent establishment, or a fixed base in the case of an individual non-U.S. holder, that is maintained by the non-U.S. holder in the United States) (“effectively connected dividends”) are not subject to the U.S. federal withholding tax, provided that the non-U.S. holder certifies, under penalty of perjury, that the dividends paid to such holder are effectively connected dividends on a properly executed and completed IRS Form W-8ECI (or other applicable form). Instead, any such dividends will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net income basis in a manner similar to that which would apply if the non-U.S. holder were a U.S. person.
Corporate non-U.S. holders who receive effectively connected dividends may also be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a gross rate of 30% on their earnings and profits for the taxable year that are effectively connected with the holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States, subject to any exemption or reduction provided by an applicable income tax treaty.
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| Table of Contents |
Sale or Taxable Disposition of Common Stock by Non-U.S. Holders
Any gain realized on the sale, exchange or other taxable disposition of our common stock generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax unless:
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| · | the gain is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business by the non-U.S. holder within the United States (and, if required by an applicable income tax treaty, is attributable to a permanent establishment, or fixed base in the case of an individual non-U.S. holder, that is maintained by the non-U.S. holder in the United States); |
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| · | the non-U.S. holder is an individual who is present in the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year of that disposition, and certain other conditions are met; or |
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| · | we are or have been a “United States real property holding corporation” for U.S. federal income tax purposes at any time during the shorter of the five-year period ending on the date of such disposition and the non-U.S. holder’s holding period in our common stock. |
A non-U.S. holder described in the first or second bullet point above generally will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the net gain derived from the sale or disposition under regular graduated U.S. federal income tax rates as if the holder were a U.S. person. If the non-U.S. holder is a corporation, then the gain may also, under certain circumstances, be subject to the “branch profits” tax, which was discussed above.
With respect to the third bullet point, although there can be no assurance, we believe we are not, have not been and will not become a “United States real property holding corporation” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In the event that we are or become a United States real property holding corporation at any time during the applicable period described in the third bullet point above, any gain recognized on a sale or other taxable disposition of our common stock may be subject to U.S. federal income tax, including any applicable withholding tax, if (i) the non-U.S. holder beneficially owns, or has owned, more than 5% of our common stock at any time during the applicable period, or (ii) our common stock ceases to be regularly traded on an “established securities market” within the meaning of the Code. Non-U.S. holders who intend to acquire more than 5% of our common stock are encouraged to consult their tax advisors with respect to the U.S. tax consequences of a disposition of our common stock.
Any proceeds from the disposition of our common stock will also be subject to the discussion below under the section titled “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Considerations.”
Federal Estate Tax
Common stock owned or treated as owned by an individual who is a non-U.S. holder at the time of his or her death generally will be included in the individual’s gross estate for U.S. federal estate tax purposes and may be subject to U.S. federal estate tax unless an applicable estate tax treaty provides otherwise.
Information Reporting and Backup Withholding
Information returns will be filed with the IRS in connection with payments of dividends on our common stock and the proceeds from a sale or other disposition of our common stock. Copies of information returns may be made available to the tax authorities of the country in which a non-U.S. holder resides or is incorporated under the provisions of a specific treaty or agreement.
You may be subject to backup withholding with respect to dividends paid on our common stock or with respect to proceeds received from a disposition of the shares of our common stock. Certain holders (including, among others, corporations and certain tax-exempt organizations) are generally not subject to backup withholding. You will be subject to backup withholding if you are not otherwise exempt and you:
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| · | fail to furnish your taxpayer identification number, or TIN, which, for an individual, is ordinarily his or her social security number; |
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| · | furnish an incorrect TIN; |
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| · | are notified by the IRS that you have failed to properly report payments of interest or dividends; or |
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| · | fail to certify, under penalties of perjury, that you have furnished a correct TIN and that the IRS has not notified you that you are subject to backup withholding. |
| S-16 |
| Table of Contents |
Backup withholding is not an additional tax, but rather is a method of tax collection. You generally will be entitled to credit any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules against your U.S. federal income tax liability provided that the required information is furnished to the IRS in a timely manner.
A non-U.S. holder may have to comply with certification procedures to establish that it is not a U.S. person in order to avoid information reporting and backup withholding tax requirements. The certification procedures required to claim a reduced rate of withholding under an income tax treaty will satisfy the certification requirements necessary to avoid backup withholding as well. The amount of any backup withholding from a payment to a non-U.S. holder may be allowed as a credit against such holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability and may entitle such non-U.S. holder to a refund, provided that the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Considerations
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, generally imposes a U.S. federal withholding tax at a rate of 30% on payments of dividends on, and gross proceeds from the sale or other disposition of, our common stock if paid to a foreign entity unless (i) if the foreign entity is a “foreign financial institution,” the foreign entity must enter into an agreement with the IRS or, in the case of a foreign financial institution in a jurisdiction that has entered into an intergovernmental agreement with the United States, comply with the requirements of such agreement and undertake certain due diligence, reporting, withholding, and certain certification obligations, (ii) if the foreign entity is not a “foreign financial institution,” the foreign entity identifies certain of its U.S. investors, if any, or (iii) the foreign entity is otherwise exempt under FATCA. Proposed Treasury regulations have been issued that would eliminate withholding on payments of gross proceeds (but not on payments of dividends). Pursuant to the preamble to the proposed Treasury regulations, we and any withholding agent may (but are not required to) rely on this proposed change to FATCA withholding until the final regulations are issued or the proposed regulations are withdrawn. Foreign financial institutions located in jurisdictions that have an intergovernmental agreement with the United States governing FATCA may be subject to different rules.
We will not pay any additional amounts to non-U.S. holders in respect of any amounts withheld, including pursuant to FATCA. Under certain circumstances, a non-U.S. holder may be eligible for refunds or credits of the tax. An intergovernmental agreement between the United States and an applicable foreign country may modify the requirements described in this section. Non-U.S. holders should consult their own tax advisors regarding the possible implications of these rules on their investment in our common stock and the entities through which they hold our common stock, including, without limitation, the process and deadlines for meeting the applicable requirements to prevent the imposition of the 30% withholding tax under FATCA.
| S-17 |
| Table of Contents |
We have entered into the Distribution Agreement with Cantor and Oppenheimer as our designated agents and/or principals, which we have filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus supplement forms a part. The Distribution Agreement is incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement. Sales of our common stock, if any, may be made in sales deemed to be “at the market” offerings as defined in Rule 415 of the Securities Act or in privately negotiated transactions. The Designated Agents are not required to sell any specific amount, but will use commercially reasonable efforts to sell on our behalf all of our common stock requested to be sold by us, consistent with their normal trading and sales practices, under the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Distribution Agreement. We may instruct the Designated Agents not to sell our common stock if the sales cannot be effected at or above the price designated by us in any instruction or placement notice we deliver to the Designated Agents. We or the Designated Agents may suspend the offering of our common stock upon delivering notice and subject to other conditions, as further described in the Distribution Agreement.
The respective Designated Agent to whom we deliver a placement notice will provide written confirmation to us following the close of trading on the NYSE American market each day in which our shares are sold under the Distribution Agreement by the respective Designated Agent. Each such confirmation will include the number of shares of common stock sold on such day, the net proceeds to us, the compensation payable by us to that Designated Agent in connection with the sales of such common stock, and the additional expenses deducted from the net proceeds payable to us.
We will pay the Designated Agents commissions for their respective services in acting as our agents or principals in the sale of our common stock. Each Designated Agent will be entitled to compensation at a fixed commission rate of up to 3.0% of the gross sales price of all of our common stock sold through it as designated agent under the Distribution Agreement. We estimate that the total expenses for the offering, excluding compensation payable to the Designated Agents under the terms of the Distribution Agreement, will be approximately $160,000, which includes the reimbursement to the Designated Agents for the reasonable out-of-pocket fees and disbursements of its legal counsel in an amount not to exceed $50,000.
Settlement for sales of our common stock will occur on the second business day following the date on which any sales are made, or on such other date as is agreed upon by us and the Designated Agents in connection with a particular transaction, in return for payment of the net proceeds to us. Settlement for all shares of our common stock shall be effected by book-entry delivery of the shares of our common stock to the applicable Designated Agent’s account at The Depository Trust Company against payments by the Designated Agents of the net proceeds from the sale of such shares of our common stock in same day funds delivered to an account designated by us.
We will report at least quarterly the number of shares of common stock sold through the Designated Agents under the Distribution Agreement, the net proceeds to us and the compensation paid by us to the Designated Agents in connection with the sales of our common stock.
The Designated Agents and their affiliates have provided, and may in the future provide, various investment banking, commercial banking, fiduciary and advisory services for us from time to time for which they have received, and may in the future receive, customary fees and expenses. The Designated Agents and their affiliates may, from time to time, engage in other transactions with and perform services for us in the ordinary course of their business.
In connection with the sale of our common stock on our behalf, each Designated Agent will be deemed to be an “underwriter” within the meaning of the Securities Act, and the compensation of the Designated Agents will be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts. We have agreed to indemnify the Designated Agents against specified liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribute to payments that the Designated Agents may be required to make because of those liabilities.
The offering of shares of our common stock pursuant to the Distribution Agreement will terminate upon the earlier of (1) the sale of all shares subject to the Distribution Agreement, or (2) termination of the Distribution Agreement pursuant to its terms. The Distribution Agreement may be terminated by the Designated Agents or as further described in the Distribution Agreement.
| S-18 |
| Table of Contents |
Certain legal matters relating to this offering will be passed on by Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, a Professional Corporation, Newport Beach, California. Certain legal matters relating to this offering will be passed upon for the Designated Agents by Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky, and Popeo, P.C., New York, New York.
The consolidated financial statements of VolitionRx Limited as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 and for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2020, have been incorporated by reference herein in reliance upon the reports of Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC, independent registered public accounting firm, incorporated by reference herein, and upon the authority of said firm as experts in accounting and auditing.
| S-19 |
| Table of Contents |
INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate” into this prospectus information that we file with the SEC in other documents. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring to other documents that contain that information. Any information that we incorporate by reference into this prospectus is considered part of this prospectus.
Information contained in this prospectus, and information that we file with the SEC in the future and incorporate by reference in this prospectus automatically modifies and supersedes previously filed information, including information in previously filed documents or reports that have been incorporated by reference in this prospectus, to the extent the new information differs from or is inconsistent with the old information. Any statement so modified will be deemed to constitute a part of this prospectus only as so modified, and any statement so superseded will be deemed not to constitute a part of this prospectus.
We incorporate by reference, as of their respective dates of filing, the documents listed below that we have filed with the SEC and any additional documents that we may file in the future with the SEC pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, between the date of this prospectus supplement and the date on which the offering of the securities covered by this prospectus has been completed, other than, in each case, documents or information deemed to have been “furnished” and not “filed” in accordance with SEC rules:
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| · | our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, as filed with the SEC on March 22, 2021; |
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| · | our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarters ended March 31, 2021 and June 30, 2021, as filed with the SEC on May 11, 2021 and August 11, 2021, respectively; |
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| · | our Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A, as filed with the SEC on April 29, 2021 (to the extent incorporated by reference into Part III of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020); |
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| · | our Current Reports on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on each of January 15, 2021, February 2, 2021, February 9, 2021, February 12, 2021, March 29, 2021 and June 22, 2021; and |
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| · | the description of our common stock contained in our registration statement on Form 8-A, as filed with the SEC on February 3, 2015, Exhibit 4.1 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as filed with the SEC on February 20, 2020, and any other amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. |
These filings have not been included in or delivered with this prospectus. We hereby undertake to provide without charge to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom this prospectus is delivered, upon written or oral request, a copy of any or all documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus, but not delivered with the prospectus, other than exhibits to such documents unless such exhibits are specifically incorporated by reference into the documents that this prospectus incorporates. To request such materials, please contact Mr. Rodney Rootsaert, our Corporate Secretary, at c/o Corporate Secretary, VolitionRx Limited, 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, by telephone at +1 (646) 650-1351 or by email at notice@volition.com. These documents are also available free of charge through the Investors section on our website at www.volition.com as soon as practicable after such materials have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC.
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus, in any document incorporated by reference herein, or in any free writing prospectuses we may provide to you in connection with this offering. Neither we nor the Designated Agents have authorized anyone to provide you with any different information. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may provide to you.
The information contained in this prospectus, and in the documents incorporated by reference herein, is accurate only as of the date such information is presented. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects may have changed since those respective dates.
| S-20 |
| Table of Contents |
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We file annual, quarterly and current reports and other information with the SEC. Our filings with the SEC are available from the SEC’s internet site at www.sec.gov, which contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically.
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus are part of a registration statement that we filed with the SEC. As permitted by SEC rules, this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus form a part of the registration statement, but do not contain all of the information that is included in the registration statement. The registration statement contains more information regarding us and our securities, including certain exhibits. You can obtain a copy of the registration statement from the SEC’s website.
| S-21 |
Up to $25,000,000
Common Stock
_____________________________
PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
_____________________________
| Cantor |
| Oppenheimer & Co. |
, 2021
PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
ITEM 14. OTHER EXPENSES OF ISSUANCE AND DISTRIBUTION.
The following table sets forth an itemization of the various costs and expenses, other than underwriting discounts and commissions, payable by us in connection with the issuance and distribution of the securities being registered hereunder. All of the amounts shown are estimated except for the SEC registration fee, of which $5,967 was previously paid.
| SEC registration fee | $ | 10,910 |
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| FINRA filing fees | $ | * |
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| Legal fees and expenses | $ | * |
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| Accounting fees and expenses | $ | * |
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| Miscellaneous | $ | * |
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| Total expenses | $ | * |
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* These fees and expenses depend on the securities offered and the number of issuances, and accordingly cannot be estimated at this time.
ITEM 15. INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS.
We are incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware General Corporation Law, or the DGCL, permits a corporation to provide in its certificate of incorporation that a director of the corporation shall not be personally liable to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duties as a director, except for liability for any:
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| · | breach of a director’s duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders; |
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| · | act or omission not in good faith or that involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law; |
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| · | unlawful payment of dividends or redemption of shares (DGCL Section 174); or |
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| · | transaction from which the director derives an improper personal benefit. |
Section 145 of the DGCL provides, in general, that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than a derivative action by or in the right of the corporation), by reason of the fact that such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if such person acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe such person’s conduct was unlawful. In the case of a derivative action, a Delaware corporation may indemnify any such person against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if such person acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, except that no indemnification will be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person will have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery or any other court in which such action was brought determines such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses. To the extent that a present or former director or officer of a Delaware corporation is successful on the merits or otherwise in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to above, or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, Section 145 of the DGCL provides that such person shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding.
Section 174 of the DGCL provides, among other things, that a director, who willfully or negligently approves of an unlawful payment of dividends or an unlawful stock purchase or redemption, may be held liable for such actions. A director who was either absent when the unlawful actions were approved or dissented at the time, may avoid liability by causing his or her dissent to such actions to be entered in the books containing minutes of the meetings of the board of directors at the time such action occurred or immediately after such absent director receives notice of the unlawful acts.
| II-1 |
Regarding indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act which may be permitted for directors or officers pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we are informed that, in the opinion of the SEC, such indemnification is against public policy, as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Our Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation authorizes us to, and our Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that we shall, indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL and also pay expenses incurred in defending any such proceeding in advance of its final disposition upon delivery of an undertaking, by or on behalf of an indemnified person, to repay all amounts so advanced if it should be determined ultimately that such person is not entitled to be indemnified under the bylaws or the DGCL.
As permitted by the DGCL, we have entered into indemnification agreements with each of our directors and certain of our officers. These agreements require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law against liabilities that may arise by reason of their service to us, and to advance expenses incurred as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified.
We have an insurance policy covering our officers and directors with respect to certain liabilities, including liabilities arising under the Securities Act, or otherwise.
Any underwriting agreement or similar agreement that we enter into in connection with an offer of securities pursuant to this registration statement may provide for indemnification by any underwriters of us, our directors, our officers who sign the registration statement and our controlling persons for some liabilities, including liabilities arising under the Securities Act.
ITEM 16. EXHIBITS.
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| Incorporated by Reference |
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| Exhibit Description |
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| Exhibit |
| Filing Date |
| Filed Herewith | ||
| 1.1 |
| Form of Underwriting Agreement.* |
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| X | ||||
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| 8-K |
| 001-36833 |
| 3.1 |
| 10/11/16 |
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| S-8 |
| 333-208512 |
| 4.2 |
| 12/11/15 |
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| 10-SB |
| 000-30402 |
| 3(A) |
| 12/06/99 |
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| 4.2 |
| Form of Warrant Agreement and Warrant Certificate.* |
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| 4.3 |
| Form of Unit Agreement and Unit Certificate.* |
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| Legal Opinion of Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C. to Shelf Registration Statement. |
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| X | |||
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| Supplemental Legal Opinion of Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C. to Shelf Registration Statement. |
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| X | |||
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| X | ||||
| 23.2 |
| Consent of Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C. (included in Exhibit 5.1). |
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| X | ||
| 24.1 |
| Power of Attorney (included on the signature page of this registration statement). |
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| X | ||
* To be filed by amendment or pursuant to a report to be filed pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, if applicable, and incorporated herein by reference.
| II-2 |
ITEM 17. UNDERTAKINGS.
The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:
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| (1) | To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement: |
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| (i) | To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933; |
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| (ii) | To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of this registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in this registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in the volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and |
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| (iii) | To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in this registration statement or any material change to such information in this registration statement; |
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| provided, however, that paragraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) above do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) that is part of the registration statement. | |
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| (2) | That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
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| (3) | To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering. |
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| (4) | That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser: |
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| (i) | Each prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and |
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| (ii) | Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5) or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii) or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which the prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date. |
| II-3 |
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| (5) | That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities, in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser: |
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| (i) | Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424; |
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| (ii) | Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned registrant; |
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| (iii) | The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant; and |
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| (iv) | Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser. |
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| (6) | That, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
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| (7) | Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. |
| II-4 |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-3 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Singapore, Singapore, on September 24, 2021.
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| VOLITIONRX LIMITED |
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| By: | /s/ Cameron Reynolds |
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| Cameron Reynolds |
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| President, Chief Executive Officer and Director (Duly Authorized Officer and Principal Executive Officer) |
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Each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Cameron Reynolds and/or Rodney Rootsaert as his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, each acting alone, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this registration statement, and to sign any registration statement for the same offering covered by this registration statement that is to be effective upon filing pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and all post-effective amendments thereto, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and all documents in connection therewith, making such changes in this registration statement as such attorneys-in-fact and agents so acting deem appropriate, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in with respect to the offering of securities contemplated by this registration statement, as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, each acting alone, or his substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
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| Title | Date |
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| /s/ Cameron Reynolds |
| President, Chief Executive Officer and Director (Principal Executive Officer) | Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Cameron Reynolds |
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| /s/ Terig Hughes |
| Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer | Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Terig Hughes |
| (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) |
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| /s/ Rodney Gerard Rootsaert |
| Secretary
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Rodney Gerard Rootsaert |
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| /s/ Dr. Martin Faulkes |
| Director
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Dr. Martin Faulkes |
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| /s/ Guy Innes |
| Director
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Guy Innes |
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| /s/ Dr. Alan Colman |
| Director
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Dr. Alan Colman |
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| /s/ Dr. Phillip Barnes |
| Director
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Dr. Phillip Barnes |
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| /s/ Dr. Edward Futcher |
| Director
| Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Dr. Edward Futcher |
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| /s/ Kim Nguyen |
| Director | Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Kim Nguyen |
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| /s/ Richard Brudnick |
| Director | Dated: September 24, 2021 |
| Richard Brudnick |
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| II-5 |
EXHIBIT 1.2
VOLITIONRX LIMITED
$25,000,000
COMMON STOCK
EQUITY DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT
September 24, 2021
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.
499 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
85 Broad Street, 26th Floor
New York, New York 10004
Ladies and Gentlemen:
VolitionRx Limited, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), confirms its agreement (this “Agreement”) with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (each, an “Agent” and together, the “Agents”), as follows:
1. Issuance and Sale of Shares. The Company agrees that, from time to time during the term of this Agreement, on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth herein, it may issue and sell to or through the Designated Agent (as defined in Section 22(b)), shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Common Stock”), having an aggregate offering price of up to $25,000,000 (the “Maximum Amount”), subject to the limitations set forth in Section 3(b) hereof. The issuance and sale of shares of Common Stock to or through the Designated Agent will be effected pursuant to the Registration Statement (as defined below) filed, or to be filed, by the Company and after such Registration Statement has been declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”), although nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as requiring the Company to use the Registration Statement (as defined below) to issue the Common Stock.
On the date of this Agreement, the Company has filed, or will file, in accordance with the provisions of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Securities Act”), with the Commission, a registration statement on Form S-3, including a base prospectus, relating to certain securities, including the Common Stock, to be issued from time to time by the Company, and which incorporates by reference documents that the Company has filed or will file in accordance with the provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Exchange Act”). The Company has prepared a prospectus supplement specifically relating to the offer and sale of Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement included as part of such registration statement (the “ATM Prospectus”). As soon as practicable following the date that such registration statement is declared effective, the Company will furnish to each Agent, for use by such Agent, copies of the ATM Prospectus included as part of such registration statement, relating to the Placement Shares. Except where the context otherwise requires, such registration statement, as amended when it becomes effective, including all documents filed as part thereof or incorporated by reference therein, and including any information contained in a Prospectus (as defined below) subsequently filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act or deemed to be a part of such registration statement pursuant to Rule 430B or 462(b) of the Securities Act, is herein called the “Registration Statement.” The base prospectus, including all documents incorporated therein by reference (to the extent such information has not been superseded or modified in accordance with Rule 412 under the Securities Act (as qualified by Rule 430B(g) of the Securities Act)), and the ATM Prospectus, including all documents incorporated therein by reference (to the extent such information has not been superseded or modified in accordance with Rule 412 under the Securities Act (as qualified by Rule 430B(g) of the Securities Act)), each of which is included in the Registration Statement, as it or they may be supplemented by any additional prospectus supplement, in the form in which such prospectus and/or ATM Prospectus have most recently been filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, together with any “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433 of the Securities Act (“Rule 433”), relating to the Placement Shares (as defined below) that (i) is required to be filed with the Commission by the Company or (ii) is exempt from filing pursuant to Rule 433(d)(5)(i), 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), is herein called the “Prospectus.” Any reference herein to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein, and any reference herein to the terms “amend,” “amendment” or “supplement” with respect to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the filing after the execution hereof of any document with the Commission deemed to be incorporated by reference therein pursuant to the Securities Act or the Exchange Act. For purposes of this Agreement, all references to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or to any amendment or supplement thereto shall be deemed to include the most recent copy of the relevant document filed with the Commission pursuant to the Electronic Data Gathering Analysis and Retrieval System or any successor thereto (collectively “EDGAR”).
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2. Placements. Each time that the Company wishes to issue and sell the Common Stock through the Designated Agent (each, a “Placement”), it will notify the Designated Agent by email notice (or other method mutually agreed to in writing by the parties) (a “Placement Notice”) containing the parameters in accordance with which it desires the Common Stock to be sold, which shall at a minimum include the number of shares of Common Stock to be issued (the “Placement Shares”), the time period during which sales are requested to be made, any limitation on the number of shares of Common Stock that may be sold in any one Trading Day (as defined in Section 3) and any minimum price below which sales may not be made, a form of which containing such minimum sales parameters necessary is attached hereto as Schedule 1. The Placement Notice shall originate from any of the individuals from the Company set forth on Schedule 2 (with a copy to each of the other individuals from the Company listed on such schedule), and shall be addressed to each of the individuals from the Designated Agent set forth on Schedule 2, as such Schedule 2 may be amended from time to time by a party by delivering email notice to the other parties of the addition or deletion of individuals of such party. The receipt of each such Placement Notice shall be acknowledged by the Designated Agent by providing email notice to the Company. The Placement Notice shall be effective upon receipt by the Designated Agent unless and until (i) in accordance with the notice requirements set forth in Section 4, the Designated Agent declines to accept the terms contained therein for any reason, in its sole discretion (which the Designated Agent must communicate by providing email notice by the end of the Business Day (as defined below) following the date of receipt of the Placement Notice, or the Placement Notice will be deemed to be accepted by the Designated Agent in accordance with its terms), (ii) the entire amount of the Placement Shares have been sold, (iii) in accordance with the notice requirements set forth in Section 4, the Company suspends or terminates the Placement Notice, (iv) the Company issues a subsequent Placement Notice with parameters superseding those on the earlier dated Placement Notice, or (v) the Agreement has been terminated under the provisions of Section 11. The amount of any discount, commission or other compensation to be paid by the Company to any Agent in connection with such Agent’s sale of the Placement Shares, as the Designated Agent, shall be as set forth in Schedule 3. It is expressly acknowledged and agreed that neither the Company nor either Agent will have any obligation whatsoever with respect to a Placement or any Placement Shares unless and until the Company delivers a Placement Notice to a Designated Agent and the Designated Agent does not decline such Placement Notice pursuant to the terms set forth above, and then only upon the terms specified therein and herein. In the event of a conflict between the terms of this Agreement and the terms of a Placement Notice, the terms of the Placement Notice will control.
3. Sale of Placement Shares by the Designated Agent.
(a) Subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, upon the Company’s issuance of a Placement Notice, and unless the sale of the Placement Shares described therein has been declined, suspended, or otherwise terminated in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, the Designated Agent will use its commercially reasonable efforts consistent with its normal trading and sales practices and applicable state and federal laws, rules and regulations and the rules of the NYSE American (the “Exchange”), for the period specified in the Placement Notice, to sell such Placement Shares up to the amount specified by the Company in, and otherwise in accordance with the terms of such Placement Notice. The Designated Agent will provide written confirmation to the Company (including by email correspondence to each of the individuals of the Company set forth on Schedule 2, if receipt of such correspondence is actually acknowledged by any of the individuals to whom the notice is sent, other than via auto-reply) no later than the opening of the Trading Day (as defined below) immediately following the Trading Day on which it has made sales of Placement Shares hereunder setting forth the number of Placement Shares sold on such day, the compensation payable by the Company to the Designated Agent pursuant to Section 2 with respect to such sales, and the Net Proceeds (as defined below) payable to the Company, with an itemization of the deductions made by the Designated Agent (as set forth in Section 5(a)) from the gross proceeds that it receives from such sales. Subject to the terms of the Placement Notice, the Designated Agent may sell Placement Shares by any method permitted by law deemed to be an “at the market” offering as defined in Rule 415 under the Securities Act, including without limitation sales made directly on the Exchange, on any other existing trading market for the Common Stock or to or through a market maker. If expressly authorized by the Company in a Placement Notice, the Designated Agent may also sell Placement Shares in privately negotiated transactions. Subject to Section 3(c) below, the Designated Agent shall not purchase Placement Shares for its own account as principal unless expressly authorized to do so by the Company in a Placement Notice. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (i) there can be no assurance that the Designated Agent will be successful in selling Placement Shares, and (ii) the Designated Agent will incur no liability or obligation to the Company or any other person or entity if it does not sell Placement Shares for any reason other than a failure by the Designated Agent to use its commercially reasonable efforts consistent with its normal trading and sales practices and applicable law and regulations to sell such Placement Shares as required under this Section 3. For the purposes hereof, “Trading Day” means any day on which the Company’s Common Stock is purchased and sold on the principal market on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted.
(b) Under no circumstances shall the Company cause or request the offer or sale of any Placement Shares if, after giving effect to the sale of such Placement Shares, the aggregate number or gross sales proceeds of Placement Shares sold pursuant to this Agreement would exceed the lesser of: (i) the number or dollar amount of shares of Common Stock registered pursuant to the Registration Statement pursuant to which the offering hereunder is being made, (ii) the number of authorized but unissued and unreserved shares of Common Stock, (iii) the number or dollar amount of shares of Common Stock permitted to be offered and sold by the Company under Form S-3 (including General Instruction I.B.6. of Form S-3, if and for so long as applicable), (iv) the number or dollar amount of shares of Common Stock authorized from time to time to be issued and sold under this Agreement by the Company’s board of directors, a duly authorized committee thereof or a duly authorized executive officer, and notified to the Designated Agent in writing, or (v) the number or dollar amount of shares of Common Stock for which the Company has filed the ATM Prospectus or other prospectus or prospectus supplement thereto specifically relating to the offering of the Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement. Under no circumstances shall the Company cause or request the offer or sale of any Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement at a price lower than the minimum price authorized from time to time by the Company’s board of directors, a duly authorized committee thereof or a duly authorized executive officer, and notified to the Designated Agent in writing. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, the parties hereto acknowledge and agree that compliance with the limitations set forth in this Section 3(b) on the number or dollar amount of Placement Shares that may be issued and sold under this Agreement from time to time shall be the sole responsibility of the Company, and that the Designated Agent shall have no obligation in connection with such compliance.
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(c) The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Designated Agent has informed the Company that the Designated Agent may, to the extent permitted under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act (including, without limitation, Regulation M promulgated thereunder), purchase and sell shares of Common Stock for its own account while this Agreement is in effect, and shall be under no obligation to purchase Placement Shares on a principal basis pursuant to this Agreement, except as otherwise agreed by the Designated Agent in a Placement Notice; provided, that no such purchase or sales shall take place while a Placement Notice is in effect (except (i) as agreed by the Company and the Designated Agent in the Placement Notice or (ii) to the extent the Designated Agent may engage in sales of Placement Shares purchased or deemed purchased from the Company as a “riskless principal” or in a similar capacity); and, provided, further, that the Designated Agent acknowledges and agrees that, except as expressly set forth in a Placement Notice, any such transactions are not being, and shall not be deemed to have been, undertaken at the request or direction of, or for the account of, the Company, and that the Company has and shall have no control over any decision by the Designated Agent to enter into any such transactions.
(d) During the term of this Agreement and notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, each Agent agrees that in no event will such Agent or its affiliates engage in any market making, bidding, stabilization or other trading activity with regard to the Common Stock or related derivative securities if such activity would be prohibited under Regulation M or other anti-manipulation rules under the Exchange Act.
(e) Each Agent represents and warrants that it is duly registered as a broker-dealer under FINRA, the Exchange Act and the applicable statutes and regulations of each state in which the Placement Shares will be offered and sold, except such states in which such Agent is exempt from registration or such registration is not otherwise required in connection with the offer and sale of the Placement Shares. Each Agent shall continue, for the term of this Agreement, to be duly registered as a broker-dealer under FINRA, the Exchange Act and the applicable statutes and regulations of each state in which the Placement Shares will be offered and sold, except such states in which it is exempt from registration or such registration is not otherwise required in connection with the offer and sale of the Placement Shares.
4. Suspension of Sales.
(a) The Company or the Designated Agent may, upon notice to the other party in writing (including by email correspondence to each of the individuals of the other party set forth on Schedule 2, if receipt of such correspondence is actually acknowledged by any of the individuals to whom the notice is sent, other than via auto-reply) or by telephone (confirmed immediately by verifiable facsimile transmission or email correspondence to each of the individuals of the other party set forth on Schedule 2), suspend any offer and sale of Placement Shares for a period of time (a “Suspension Period”) in which case the Designated Agent shall immediately cease offering and selling such Placement Shares; provided, however, that such suspension shall not affect or impair either party’s obligations with respect to any Placement Shares sold hereunder prior to the receipt of such notice. Each of the parties agrees that no such notice under this Section 4 shall be effective against the other unless it is made to one of the individuals named on Schedule 2 hereto, as such schedule may be amended from time to time. During a Suspension Period, the Company shall not issue any Placement Notices and the Designated Agent shall not sell any Placement Shares hereunder. The party that issued a suspension notice shall notify the other party in writing of the Trading Day on which the Suspension Period shall expire not later than twenty-four (24) hours prior to such Trading Day.
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(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, except in accordance with a duly adopted trading plan entered into with a Designated Agent that complies with the requirements of Rule 10b5-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, during any period in which the Company is in possession of material non-public information, the Company and the Designated Agent agree that (i) no sale of Placement Shares will take place, (ii) the Company shall not request the sale of any Placement Shares, and (iii) the Designated Agent shall not be obligated to sell or offer to sell any Placement Shares.
5. Settlement.
(a) Settlement of Placement Shares. Unless otherwise specified in the applicable Placement Notice, settlement for sales of Placement Shares will occur on the second (2nd) Trading Day (or such earlier day as is industry practice for regular-way trading) following the respective Point of Sale (as defined below) (each, a “Settlement Date”). The amount of proceeds to be delivered to the Company on a Settlement Date against receipt of the Placement Shares sold (the “Net Proceeds”) will be equal to the aggregate sales price received by the Designated Agent at which such Placement Shares were sold, after deduction for (i) the Designated Agent’s discount, commission or other compensation for such sales payable by the Company pursuant to Section 2 hereof, (ii) any other amounts due and payable by the Company to the Designated Agent hereunder pursuant to Section 7(g) hereof, and (iii) any transaction fees imposed by any governmental or self-regulatory organization in respect of such sales. “Point of Sale” means, for a Placement, the time at which an acquiror of Placement Shares entered into a contract, binding upon such acquiror, to acquire such Placement Shares.
(b) Delivery of Placement Shares. On or before each Settlement Date, the Company will, or will cause its transfer agent to, electronically transfer the Placement Shares being sold by crediting the Designated Agent’s or its designee’s account (provided the Designated Agent shall have given the Company written notice of such designee at least one (1) Trading Day prior to the Settlement Date) at The Depository Trust Company through its Deposit and Withdrawal at Custodian System or by such other means of delivery as may be mutually agreed upon by the parties hereto which in all cases shall be freely tradable, transferable, registered shares in good deliverable form. On each Settlement Date, the Designated Agent will deliver the related Net Proceeds in same day funds to an account designated by the Company on, or prior to, the Settlement Date. The Designated Agent will be responsible for providing DWAC instructions or instructions for delivery by other means with regard to the transfer of the Placement Shares being sold. The Company agrees that if the Company, or its transfer agent (if applicable), defaults in its obligation to deliver duly authorized Placement Shares on a Settlement Date (other than as a result of a failure by the Designated Agent to provide instructions for delivery), in addition to and in no way limiting the rights and obligations set forth in Section 9(a) (Indemnification and Contribution) hereto, the Company will (i) hold the Designated Agent, its directors, officers, members, partners, employees and agents of the Designated Agent, each broker-dealer affiliate of the Designated Agent, and each person, if any, who (A) controls the Designated Agent within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act or (B) is controlled by or is under common control with the Designated Agent (each, a “Designated Agent Affiliate”), harmless against any loss, claim, damage, or reasonable and documented expense (including reasonable and documented legal fees and expenses), as incurred, arising out of or in connection with such default by the Company or its transfer agent (if applicable) and (ii) pay to the Designated Agent any commission, discount, or other compensation to which it would otherwise have been entitled absent such default.
(c) Sales Through Agents. With respect to the offering and sale of Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement, the Company agrees that any offer to sell Placement Shares, any solicitation of an offer to buy Placement Shares, and any sales of Placement Shares shall only be effected by or through the Designated Agent on any single given day, and the Company shall in no event request that more than one Agent offer or sell Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement on the same day.
6. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company, on behalf of itself and its subsidiaries, represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each Agent that as of each Applicable Time (as defined in Section 22(a)) unless such representation, warranty or agreement specifies a different date or time:
(a) Compliance with Registration Requirements. As of each Applicable Time other than the date of this Agreement, the Registration Statement and any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement have been declared effective by the Commission under the Securities Act. The Company has complied to the Commission’s satisfaction with all requests of the Commission for additional or supplemental information related to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement is in effect and no proceedings for such purpose have been instituted or are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, are contemplated or threatened by the Commission. The Registration Statement and, assuming no act or omission on the part of the Agents that would make such statements untrue, the offer and sale of the Placement Shares as contemplated hereby meet the requirements of Rule 415 under the Securities Act and comply in all material respects with said Rule. In the section entitled “Plan of Distribution” in the ATM Prospectus, the Company has named Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. as agents that the Company has engaged in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement. The Company was not and is not an “ineligible issuer” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act.
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(b) No Misstatement or Omission. As of (i) the time of filing of the Registration Statement and (ii) as of the date of this Agreement, the Company was not an “ineligible issuer” in connection with the offering of the Placement Shares pursuant to Rules 164, 405 and 433 under the Securities Act. The Company agrees to notify the Agents promptly upon the Company becoming an “ineligible issuer.” The Prospectus when filed will comply or complied and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act. Each of the Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the time it becomes effective, and as of each Applicable Time, if any, will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act and did not and, as of each Applicable Time, if any, will not contain any 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. The Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, as of its date, did not and, as of each Applicable Time, if any, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or 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. The representations and warranties set forth in the two immediately preceding sentences do not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereto, or the Prospectus, or any amendments or supplements thereto, made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by the Agents expressly for use therein. The parties hereto agree that the information provided in writing by or on behalf of the Agents expressly for use in the Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereto, or the Prospectus, or any amendments or supplements thereto, consists solely of the material referred to in Schedule 5 hereto, as updated from time to time. There are no contracts or other documents required to be described in the Prospectus or to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement which have not been described or filed as required.
(c) S-3 Eligibility. At the time the Registration Statement and any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement was or will be filed with the Commission, at the time the Registration Statement and any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement was or will be declared effective by the Commission, and at the time the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K was filed with the Commission, the Company met or will meet the then applicable requirements for the use of Form S-3 under the Securities Act, including, but not limited to, General Instruction I.B.6. of Form S-3, if and for so long as applicable. The Company is not a shell company (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) and has not been a shell company for at least 12 calendar months previously and if it has been a shell company at any time previously, has filed current Form 10 information (as defined in General Instruction I.B.6. of Form S-3) with the Commission at least 12 calendar months previously reflecting its status as an entity that is not a shell company.
(d) Distribution of Offering Material By the Company. The Company has not distributed and will not distribute, prior to the completion of the Agents’ distribution of the Placement Shares, any offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Placement Shares other than the Prospectus or the Registration Statement.
(e) The Equity Distribution Agreement. This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company, and constitutes a valid, legal, and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as rights to indemnity or contribution hereunder may be limited by federal or state securities laws and except as such enforceability may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws affecting the rights of creditors generally, and subject to general principles of equity. The Company has full corporate power and authority to enter into this Agreement and to authorize, issue and sell the Placement Shares as contemplated by this Agreement. This Agreement conforms in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.
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(f) Authorization of the Placement Shares. The Placement Shares to be sold by the Designated Agent have been duly authorized and when issued and paid for as contemplated herein will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. The issuance of the Placement Shares is not subject to the preemptive or other similar rights of any stockholder of the Company.
(g) No Applicable Registration or Other Similar Rights. There are no persons with registration or other similar rights to have any equity or debt securities registered for sale under the Registration Statement or included in the offering contemplated by this Agreement, except for such rights as have been duly waived. No person has the right to act as an underwriter or as a financial advisor to the Company in connection with the offer and sale of the Placement Shares hereunder, whether as a result of the filing or effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the sale of the Placement Shares as contemplated hereby or otherwise.
(h) No Material Adverse Change. Except as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the Prospectus: (i) there has been no material adverse change in the condition (financial or otherwise), assets, operations, business, or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries, considered as one entity (any such change is called a “Material Adverse Change”) or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, which, individually or in the aggregate, has had or would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change; (ii) the Company and its subsidiaries, considered as one entity, have not incurred any material liability or obligation, indirect, direct or contingent, not in the ordinary course of business nor entered into any material transaction or agreement not in the ordinary course of business; and (iii) there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company or, except for regular quarterly dividends publicly announced by the Company or dividends paid to the Company or other subsidiaries, by any of its subsidiaries on any class of capital stock or repurchase or redemption by the Company or any of its subsidiaries of any class of capital stock.
(i) Independent Accountants. Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company, whose report with respect to the financial statements (which term as used in this Agreement includes the related notes thereto) and any supporting schedules filed with the Commission or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and included or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, are independent public accountants as required by the Securities Act and the rules and regulations thereunder.
(j) Preparation of the Financial Statements. The consolidated financial statements of the Company, together with related notes and schedules as incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, present fairly in all material respects the financial position and the results of operations and cash flows of the Company and its subsidiaries, at the indicated dates and for the indicated periods (subject, in the case of unaudited statements, to normal year-end audit adjustments). Such financial statements and related schedules have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted principles of accounting, as in effect at the time of filing, consistently applied throughout the periods involved, except as disclosed therein, and all adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of results for such periods have been made (subject (i) to such adjustments to accounting standards and practices as are noted therein, and (ii) in the case of unaudited interim statements, to (A) normal recurring adjustments (B) the exclusion of financial statement footnotes, and (C) the information being presented in a condensed or summary manner). The summary financial and statistical data included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus present fairly in all material respects the information shown therein and such data has been compiled on a basis consistent with the financial statements presented therein and the books and records of the Company. The statistical, industry-related and market-related information included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate and the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from such sources to the extent required. The other financial data set forth or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus is accurately presented in all material respects and prepared on a basis consistent with the financial statements and books and records of the Company. The Company and its 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 and the Prospectus which are required to be disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. All disclosures contained in the Registration Statement 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 Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act, to the extent applicable.
(k) XBRL. The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement 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.
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(l) Incorporation and Good Standing of the Company and its Subsidiaries. The Company is a corporation duly incorporated and validly existing under the laws of the State of Delaware and is in good standing under such laws. The Company has the requisite corporate power to carry on its business as described in the Prospectus. The Company is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in all jurisdictions in which the conduct of its business requires such qualification; except where the failure to be so qualified or to be in good standing would not result in a Material Adverse Change. The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed on Schedule 4. Each subsidiary is a corporation, limited liability company or other organization duly formed and validly existing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its formation and is in good standing under such laws. Each of the subsidiaries has requisite corporate power to carry on its business as described in the Prospectus. Each of the subsidiaries is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in all jurisdictions in which the conduct of its business requires such qualification; except where the failure to be so qualified or to be in good standing would not result in a Material Adverse Change.
(m) Capital Stock Matters. The Common Stock conforms in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Prospectus. The form of certificates for the Common Stock conforms to the corporate law of the jurisdiction of the Company’s incorporation. All of the issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock have been duly authorized and validly issued, are fully paid and nonassessable and have been issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws. None of the outstanding shares of Common Stock 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 equity or debt securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for, any capital stock of the Company or any of its subsidiaries other than those disclosed in the Prospectus or in a document filed as an exhibit to or incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement. All of the issued and outstanding capital stock of, or other ownership interests in, each subsidiary of the Company has been duly authorized and validly issued, is fully paid and non-assessable and, except for directors’ qualifying shares, is owned by the Company, directly or through subsidiaries, free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance or claim.
(n) Non-Contravention of Existing Instruments; No Further Authorizations or Approvals Required. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is (i) in breach or violation of its certificate or articles of incorporation, charter, bylaws, limited liability company agreement, certificate or agreement of limited or general partnership, memorandum and articles of association, or other similar organizational documents, as the case may be, of such entity, (ii) in breach of or in default (or, with the giving of notice or lapse of time or both, would be in default) (“Default”) under any indenture, mortgage, loan or credit agreement, deed of trust, note, contract, franchise, lease or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which it or any of them may be bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject (each, an “Existing Instrument”), or (iii) in violation of any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties, as applicable, except, with respect to clauses (ii) and (iii) only, for such breaches, violations or Defaults that would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Change. The Company’s execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby or by the Registration Statement and the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Placement Shares and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Placement Shares as described in the Prospectus under the caption “Use of Proceeds”) (i) will not result in any breach or violation of the certificate or articles of incorporation, charter, bylaws, limited liability company agreement, certificate or agreement of limited or general partnership, memorandum and articles of association, or other similar organizational documents, as the case may be, of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (ii) will not conflict with or constitute a breach of, or Default or a Debt Repayment Triggering Event (as defined below) under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge, claim or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries pursuant to, or require the consent of any other party to, any Existing Instrument, and (iii) will not result in any violation of 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 or any of its subsidiaries or any of its or their properties, as applicable, except, with respect to clauses (ii) and (iii) only, for such conflicts, breaches, Defaults, Debt Repayment Triggering Events or violations that would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Change. As used herein, a “Debt Repayment Triggering Event” means any event or condition which gives, or with the giving of notice or lapse of time or both would give, the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holder’s behalf), issued by the Company, the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Company or any of its subsidiaries. Each approval, consent, order, authorization, designation, declaration or filing by or with any regulatory, administrative or other governmental body necessary in connection with the execution and delivery by the Company of this Agreement and the performance of the Company of the transactions herein contemplated has been obtained or made and is in full force and effect, except (i) such additional steps as may be required by the bylaws and rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) or (ii) such additional steps as may be necessary to qualify the Common Stock for sale by the Agents under state securities or Blue Sky laws, or foreign securities laws if applicable.
(o) No Material Actions or Proceedings; Labor Disputes. There is no action, suit, claim or proceeding pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened against the Company before any court or administrative agency or otherwise (i) that is required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus and are not so described or (ii) which, if determined adversely to the Company, would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change or prevent the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, except as set forth in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus. The aggregate of all pending legal or governmental proceedings to which the Company and its subsidiaries is a party or of which any of their property or assets is the subject which are not described in the Prospectus, including ordinary routine litigation incidental to the business, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change. No labor dispute with the employees of the Company exists or, to the Company’s knowledge, is threatened or imminent. None of the employees of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is represented by a union and, to the knowledge of the Company, no union organizing activities are taking place. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has violated any federal, state or local law or foreign law relating to the discrimination in hiring, promotion or pay of employees, nor any applicable wage or hour laws, or the rules and regulations thereunder, or analogous foreign laws and regulations, which might, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Change.
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(p) All Necessary Permits, etc. Each of the Company and its subsidiaries has all licenses, certifications, permits, franchises, approvals, clearances and other regulatory authorizations (“Permits”) from governmental authorities as are necessary to (i) conduct its businesses as currently conducted and (ii) own, lease and operate its properties in the manner described in the Prospectus, except where the failure to possess, obtain or make the same would not, individually or in the aggregate result in a Material Adverse Change. There is no claim or proceeding pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened in writing, involving the status of or sanctions under any of the Permits. Each of the Company and its subsidiaries has fulfilled and performed all of its material obligations with respect to the Permits, and the Company is not aware of the occurrence of any event which allows, or after notice or lapse of time would allow, the revocation, termination, or other impairment of the rights of the Company or any of its subsidiaries under such Permit.
(q) Tax Law Compliance. All United States federal income 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, which are due and payable, have been paid, except assessments that are being contested in good faith and as to which adequate reserves have been provided, and except where the failure to do so would not result in a Material Adverse Change. Each of the Company and its subsidiaries has filed all other tax returns that are required to have been filed by it pursuant to applicable foreign, state, provincial, local or other law except insofar as the failure to file such returns would not result in a Material Adverse Change, and has paid all taxes due pursuant to such returns or pursuant to any assessment received by the Company and its subsidiaries, except for such taxes, if any, as are being contested in good faith and as to which adequate reserves have been provided and except for such taxes or assessments the nonpayment of which would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Change. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of the Company and its subsidiaries in respect of any income and corporation tax liability for any years not finally determined are adequate to meet any assessments or re-assessments for additional tax for any years not finally determined, except to the extent of any inadequacy that would not result in a Material Adverse Change. All taxes which the Company and its subsidiaries are required by law to withhold or to collect for payment have been duly withheld and collected and have been paid to the appropriate governmental authority or agency or have been accrued, reserved against and entered on the books of the Company and its subsidiaries, except to the extent that would not result in a Material Adverse Change. There are no transfer taxes or other similar fees or charges under Federal law or the laws of any state, 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 Designated Agent of the Placement Shares.
(r) Company Not an “Investment Company”. The Company has been advised of the rules and requirements under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). The Company is not, and after receipt of payment for the Placement Shares will not be, an “investment company” within the meaning of Investment Company Act and will conduct its business in a manner so that it will not become subject to the Investment Company Act.
(s) Insurance. Except as otherwise described in the Prospectus, the Company carries, or is covered by, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as it believes is reasonably adequate for the conduct of its business and the value of its properties and as is customary for companies engaged in similar industries. All policies of insurance insuring the Company or its business, assets, employees, officers and directors are in full force and effect, and the Company is in compliance with the terms of such policies in all material respects. There are no claims by the Company under any such policy or instrument as to which an insurance company is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause. The Company has no reason to believe that it 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 would not result in a Material Adverse Change.
(t) No Price Stabilization or Manipulation. Neither the Company, nor any of its subsidiaries, nor any of its or their respective directors, officers or, to the knowledge of the Company, controlling persons has taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that might reasonably be expected to cause or result in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Common Stock.
(u) Related Party Transactions. There are no business relationships or related-party transactions involving the Company or any subsidiary or any other person required to be described in the Prospectus which have not been described as required.
(v) Exchange Act Compliance. The documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, at the time they were or hereafter are filed with the Commission under the Exchange Act, complied and will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Exchange Act, and, when read together with the other information in the Prospectus, at each Point of Sale and each Settlement Date, will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.
(w) Free Writing Prospectuses. The Company represents and warrants to the Agents that neither it nor any of its agents or representatives (other than the Agents in their capacity as such) has made any offer relating to the Placement Shares that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act and that it agrees with the Agents that it will not make any offer relating to the Placement Shares that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act.
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(x) Compliance with Environmental Laws. To its knowledge, the Company is not in violation of any statute, any rule, regulation, decision or order of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or foreign, relating to the use, disposal or release of hazardous chemicals, toxic substances or radioactive and biological materials or relating to the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous chemicals, toxic substances or radioactive and biological materials (collectively, “Environmental Laws”). The Company neither owns nor, to its knowledge, operates any real property contaminated with any substance that is subject to any Environmental Laws, is not liable for any off-site disposal or contamination pursuant to any Environmental Laws, nor is it subject to any claim relating to any Environmental Laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim would individually or in the aggregate result in a Material Adverse Change; and the Company is not aware of any pending investigation which might lead to such a claim.
(y) Intellectual Property. Each of the Company and its subsidiaries owns and has full right, title and interest in and to, or has valid licenses to use, each material trade name, trademark, service mark, patent, copyright, approval, trade secret and other similar rights (collectively “Intellectual Property”) under which the Company and its subsidiaries conduct all or any material part of their respective businesses, and the Company has not created any lien or encumbrance on, or granted any right or license with respect to, any such Intellectual Property, except where the failure to own or obtain a license or right to use any such Intellectual Property could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change; there is no claim pending against the Company or its subsidiaries with respect to any Intellectual Property, and the Company and its subsidiaries have not received notice or otherwise become aware that any Intellectual Property that it uses or has used in the conduct of its business infringes upon or conflicts with the rights of any third party.
(z) Brokers. Other than the Agents, there is no broker, finder or other party that is entitled to receive from the Company any brokerage or finder’s fee or other fee or commission as a result of any transactions contemplated by this Agreement.
(aa) No Outstanding Loans or Other Indebtedness. There are no outstanding loans, advances (except normal advances for business expenses in the ordinary course of business) or guarantees of indebtedness by the Company to or for the benefit of any of the officers or directors of the Company or any of their respective family members, except as disclosed in the Prospectus to the extent required to be disclosed therein. The Company has not directly or indirectly extended or maintained credit, arranged for the extension of credit, or renewed an extension of credit, in the form of a personal loan to or for any director or executive officer of the Company.
(bb) No Reliance. The Company has not relied upon the Agents or legal counsel for the Agents for any legal, tax or accounting advice in connection with the offering and sale of the Placement Shares.
(cc) Broker-Dealer Status. Neither the Company nor any of its related entities (i) is required to register as a “broker” or “dealer” in accordance with the provisions of the Exchange Act or (ii) directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is a “person associated with a member” or “associated person of a member” (within the meaning of Article I of the NASD Manual administered by FINRA). To the Company’s knowledge, there are no affiliations or associations between any member of FINRA and any of the Company’s officers, directors or 5% or greater security holders, except as set forth in the Registration Statement. All of the information (including, but not limited to, information regarding affiliations, security ownership and trading activity) provided to the Agents or their counsel by the Company, and to the Company’s knowledge, 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 Rule 5110 of FINRA in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement is true, complete and correct, and copies of any Company filings required to be filed with FINRA have been filed with the Commission or delivered to the Agents for filing with FINRA.
(dd) Compliance with Laws. The Company has not been advised, and has no reason to believe, that it and each of its subsidiaries are not conducting business in compliance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations of the jurisdictions in which it is conducting business, except where failure to be so in compliance would not result in a Material Adverse Change.
(ee) Certain Regulations. The studies, tests and clinical trials conducted by or on behalf of the Company and its subsidiaries were and, if still pending, are being conducted in compliance with experimental protocols, procedures and controls pursuant to accepted professional scientific standards and all applicable laws and authorizations, including, without limitation, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, except where the failure to be in compliance would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change; the descriptions of the results of such studies, tests and clinical trials contained in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are accurate and complete in all material respects and fairly present the data derived from such studies, tests and clinical trials; except to the extent disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, to the knowledge of the Company, there are no studies, tests or clinical trials, the results of which the Company believes reasonably call into question the study, test, or clinical trial results described or referred to in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus when viewed in the context in which such results are described; and, except to the extent disclosed in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, the Company and its subsidiaries have not received any notices or correspondence from any applicable governmental authority requiring the termination, suspension or material modification of any studies, tests or clinical trials conducted by or on behalf of the Company or its subsidiaries.
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(ff) FDA Regulations. The Company and its subsidiaries: (A) are and at all times have been in material compliance with all statutes, rules, or regulations, including but not limited to those administered by the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”) and similar governmental authorities applicable to the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, distribution, marketing, labeling, promotion, sale, offer for sale, storage, import, export or disposal of any products being developed, manufactured or distributed by the Company or its subsidiaries (“Applicable Laws”), except as could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change; (B) have not received any warning letter or other correspondence or notice from the FDA, EMA or any other governmental authority 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 (“Authorizations”); (C) possess all material Authorizations and such Authorizations are valid and in full force and effect and are not in material violation of any term of any such Authorizations; (D) have not received written 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 Authorizations and have no knowledge that any such governmental authority or third party is considering any such claim, litigation, arbitration, action, suit, investigation or proceeding; (E) have not received written notice that any governmental authority has taken, is taking or intends to take action to limit, suspend, modify or revoke any Authorizations and have no knowledge that any such governmental authority is considering such action; (F) 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 Authorizations, 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 (G) have not, either voluntarily or involuntarily, initiated, conducted, or issued or caused to be initiated, conducted or issued, any recall, market withdrawal or replacement, safety alert, or other notice or action relating to the alleged lack of safety or efficacy of any product or any alleged product defect or violation and, to the Company’s knowledge, no third party has initiated, conducted or intends to initiate any such notice or action.
(gg) Sarbanes–Oxley Act. There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply in all material respects with any applicable provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”), including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications.
(hh) Disclosure Controls And Procedures. The Company has established and maintains “disclosure controls and procedures” (as defined in Rules 13a–15(e) and 15d–15(e) of the Exchange Act) reasonably designed to ensure that all information (both financial and non–financial) required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it will file or furnish under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and regulations of the Commission, and that all such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure and to make the certifications of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Company required under the Exchange Act with respect to such reports.
(ii) Company’s Accounting System. The Company maintains a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances 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 generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain accountability for assets; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences.
(jj) ERISA. (i) The Company is in compliance in all material respects with all presently applicable provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (“ERISA”); (ii) no “reportable event” (as defined in ERISA) has occurred with respect to any “pension plan” (as defined in ERISA) for which the Company would have any liability; (iii) the Company has not incurred and does not expect to incur liability under (A) Title IV of ERISA with respect to termination of, or withdrawal from, any “pension plan” or (B) Sections 412 or 4971 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (the “Code”); and (iv) each “pension plan” for which the Company would have any liability that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code is so qualified in all material respects and nothing has occurred, whether by action or by failure to act, which would cause the loss of such qualification, except in the case of (ii) and (iv), where such failure would not result in a Material Adverse Change.
(kk) Contracts and Agreements. There are no contracts, agreements, instruments or other documents that are required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or to be filed as exhibits thereto which have not been so described in all material respects and filed as required by Item 601(b) of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act. The copies of all contracts, agreements, instruments and other documents (including governmental licenses, authorizations, permits, consents and approvals and all amendments or waivers relating to any of the foregoing) that have been furnished to the Agents or their counsel are complete in all material respects and genuine and include all material collateral and supplemental agreements thereto. All contracts and agreements between the Company and third parties expressly referenced in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus are legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their respective terms, except as rights to indemnity or contribution thereunder (as applicable) may be limited by federal or state securities laws and except as such enforceability may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or similar laws affecting the rights of creditors generally, and subject to general principles of equity.
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(ll) Title to Properties. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, the Company and each of its subsidiaries have good and marketable title to all of the properties and assets reflected as owned in the financial statements referred to in Section 6(j) above (or elsewhere in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus), in each case free and clear of any security interests, mortgages, liens, encumbrances, equities, claims and other defects, except such as do not materially and adversely affect the value of such property or assets and do not materially interfere with the use made or proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any subsidiary. The material real property, improvements, equipment and personal property held under lease by the Company or any of its subsidiaries are held under valid and enforceable leases, with such exceptions as are not material and do not materially interfere with the use made or proposed to be made of such real property, improvements, equipment or personal property by the Company or such subsidiary. The Company and each of its subsidiaries have such consents, easements, rights-of-way or licenses from any person (“rights-of-way”) as are necessary to enable the Company and each of its subsidiaries to conduct its business in the manner described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, and except for such rights-of-way the lack of which would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Change.
(mm) No Unlawful Contributions or Other Payments. No payments or inducements have been made or given, directly or indirectly, to any federal or local official or candidate for, any federal or state office in the United States or foreign offices by the Company or any of its officers or directors, or, to the knowledge of the Company, by any of its employees or agents or any other person in connection with any opportunity, contract, permit, certificate, consent, order, approval, waiver or other authorization relating to the business of the Company, except for such payments or inducements as were lawful under applicable laws, rules and regulations. Neither the Company, nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company, (i) has used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made any direct or indirect unlawful payment to any government official or employee from corporate funds; or (iii) made any bribe, unlawful rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful payment in connection with the business of the Company.
(nn) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. None of the Company, any subsidiary or, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, is aware of or has taken any action, directly or indirectly, that would result in a violation by such persons of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, 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, in contravention of the FCPA. The Company and its subsidiaries have conducted their respective businesses in compliance in all material respects with the FCPA and have instituted and maintain policies and procedures designed to ensure, and which are reasonably expected to continue to ensure, continued compliance in all material respects therewith.
(oo) Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Company and its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in material compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions, 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 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 knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(pp) OFAC. None of the Company, any subsidiary or, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee, affiliate or person acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC.
(qq) Exchange Listing. The Common Stock is currently listed on the Exchange under the trading symbol “VNRX”. Except as disclosed in the Prospectus, the Company has not, in the 12 months preceding the date the first Placement Notice is given hereunder, received notice from the Exchange to the effect that the Company is not in compliance with the listing or maintenance requirements. Except as disclosed in the Prospectus, the Company has no reason to believe that it will not in the foreseeable future continue to be in compliance with all such listing and maintenance requirements.
(rr) Margin Rules. Neither the issuance, sale and delivery of the Placement Shares nor the application of the proceeds thereof by the Company as described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus will violate Regulation T, U or X of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any other regulation of such Board of Governors.
(ss) Continuous Offering Agreements. Except for this Agreement, the Company is not party to any other equity distribution or sales agency agreement or other similar arrangement with any other agent or any other representative in respect of any “at the market offering” or other continuous equity offering transaction.
(tt) No Material Defaults. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has defaulted on any installment 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 Change.
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(uu) Cybersecurity. The Company and its subsidiaries’ information technology assets and equipment, computers, systems, networks, hardware, software, websites, applications, and databases (collectively, “IT Systems”) are adequate for, and operate and perform in all material respects as required in connection with the operation of the business of the Company as currently conducted, to the Company’s knowledge, free and clear of all material bugs, errors, defects, Trojan horses, time bombs, malware and other corruptants. The Company and its subsidiaries have implemented and maintained commercially reasonable physical, technical and administrative controls, policies, procedures, and safeguards to maintain and protect their material confidential information and the integrity, continuous operation, redundancy and security of all IT Systems and data, including all “Personal Data” (defined below) and all sensitive, confidential or regulated data (“Confidential Data”) used in connection with their businesses. “Personal Data” means (i) a natural person’s name, street address, telephone number, e-mail address, photograph, social security number or tax identification number, driver’s license number, passport number, credit card number, bank information, or customer or account number; (ii) any information which would qualify as “personally identifying information” under the Federal Trade Commission Act, as amended; (iii) “personal data” as defined by GDPR; (iv) any information which would qualify as “protected health information” under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (collectively, “HIPAA”); (v) any “personal information” as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”); and (vi) any other piece of information that allows the identification of such natural person, or his or her family, or permits the collection or analysis of any data related to an identified person’s health or sexual orientation. To the Company’s knowledge, there have been no breaches, violations, outages or unauthorized uses of or accesses to same, except for those that have been remedied without material cost or liability or the duty to notify any other person, nor any incidents under internal review or investigations relating to the same. The Company and its subsidiaries are presently in material compliance with all applicable laws or statutes and all judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, internal policies and contractual obligations relating to the privacy and security of IT Systems, Confidential Data, and Personal Data and to the protection of such IT Systems, Confidential Data, and Personal Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification.
(vv) Compliance with Data Privacy Laws. The Company and its subsidiaries are, and at all prior times were, in material compliance with all applicable state and federal data privacy and security laws and regulations, including without limitation HIPAA, CCPA, and the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) (EU 2016/679) (collectively, the “Privacy Laws”). To ensure compliance with the Privacy Laws, the Company has in place, complies with, and takes appropriate steps reasonably designed to ensure compliance in all material respects with their policies and procedures relating to data privacy and security and the collection, storage, use, processing, disclosure, handling, and analysis of Personal Data and Confidential Data (the “Policies”). The Company has at all times made all disclosures to users or customers required by applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements, and none of such disclosures made or contained in any Policy have, to the knowledge of the Company, been inaccurate or in violation of any applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements in any material respect. The Company further certifies that neither it nor any subsidiary: (i) has received notice of any actual or potential liability under or relating to, or actual or potential violation of, any of the Privacy Laws, and has no knowledge of any event or condition that would reasonably be expected to result in any such notice; (ii) is currently conducting or paying for, in whole or in part, any investigation, remediation, or other corrective action pursuant to any Privacy Law; or (iii) is a party to any order, decree, or agreement that imposes any obligation or liability under any Privacy Law.
Any certificate signed by an officer of the Company and delivered to the Agents or to counsel for the Agents pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement shall be deemed to be a representation and warranty by the Company to the Agents as to the matters set forth therein.
The Company acknowledges that the Agents and, for purposes of the opinions to be delivered pursuant to Section 7 hereof, counsel to the Company and counsel to the Agents, will rely upon the accuracy and truthfulness of the foregoing representations and hereby consents to such reliance.
7. Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants and agrees with each Agent that:
(a) Registration Statement Amendments. After the date of this Agreement and during any period in which a Prospectus relating to any Placement Shares is required to be delivered by a Designated Agent pursuant to this Agreement under the Securities Act (including in circumstances where such requirement may be satisfied pursuant to Rule 172 under the Securities Act), (i) the Company will notify the Agents promptly of the time when any subsequent amendment to the Registration Statement, other than documents incorporated by reference, has been filed with the Commission and/or has become effective or any subsequent supplement to the Prospectus has been filed and of any request by the Commission for any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or Prospectus or for additional information, (ii) the Company will prepare and timely file with the Commission, upon either Agent’s request, any amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or Prospectus that, upon the advice of the Company’s legal counsel (after due consultation with such Agent and its counsel), may be necessary or advisable in connection with the distribution of the Placement Shares by the Agents (provided, however, that the failure of the Agents to make such request shall not relieve the Company of any obligation or liability hereunder, or affect the Agents’ right to rely on the representations and warranties made by the Company in this Agreement, and provided, further, that the only remedy the Agents shall have with respect to the failure to make such filing shall be to cease making sales under this Agreement until such amendment or supplement is filed); (iii) the Company will not file any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or Prospectus, other than documents incorporated by reference, relating to the Placement Shares or a security convertible into the Placement Shares unless a copy thereof has been submitted to the Agents within a reasonable period of time before the filing and neither Agent has reasonably objected thereto (provided, however, that the failure of either Agent to make such objection shall not relieve the Company of any obligation or liability hereunder, or affect the Agents’ right to rely on the representations and warranties made by the Company in this Agreement, and provided, further, that the only remedy the Agents shall have with respect to the failure by the Company to obtain such consent shall be to cease making sales under this Agreement); (iv) the Company will furnish to the Agents at the time of filing thereof a copy of any document that upon filing is deemed to be incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement or Prospectus, except for those documents available via EDGAR; (v) the Company will cause each amendment or supplement to the Prospectus, other than documents incorporated by reference, to be filed with the Commission as required pursuant to the applicable paragraph of Rule 424(b) of the Securities Act (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) of the Securities Act) or, in the case of any documents incorporated by reference, to be filed with the Commission as required pursuant to the Exchange Act, within the time period prescribed.
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(b) Notice of Commission Stop Orders. The Company will advise the Agents, promptly after it receives notice or obtains knowledge thereof, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any notice objecting to, or other order preventing or suspending the use of, the Prospectus, of the suspension of the qualification of the Placement Shares for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation of any proceeding for any such purpose or any examination pursuant to Section 8(e) of the Securities Act, or if the Company becomes the subject of a proceeding under Section 8A of the Securities Act in connection with the offering of the Placement Shares; and it will promptly use its commercially reasonable efforts to prevent the issuance of any stop order or to obtain its withdrawal if such a stop order should be issued. Until such time as any stop order is lifted, the Designated Agent shall cease making offers and sales under this Agreement.
(c) Delivery of Prospectus; Subsequent Changes. During any period in which a Prospectus relating to the Placement Shares is required to be delivered by a Designated Agent under the Securities Act with respect to a pending sale of the Placement Shares (including in circumstances where such requirement may be satisfied pursuant to Rule 172 under the Securities Act), the Company will comply with all requirements imposed upon it by the Securities Act, as from time to time in force, and to file on or before their respective due dates all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14, 15(d) or any other provision of or under the Exchange Act. If during such period any event occurs as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances then existing, not misleading, or if during such period it is necessary to amend or supplement the Registration Statement or Prospectus to comply with the Securities Act, the Company will promptly notify the Agents to suspend the offering of Placement Shares during such period and the Company will promptly amend or supplement the Registration Statement or Prospectus (at the expense of the Company) so as to correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance; provided, however, that the Company may delay the filing of any amendment or supplement (subject to continued suspension of the offering of Placement Shares by a Designated Agent during such period), if in the judgment of the Company, it is in the best interest of the Company to do so.
(d) Listing of Placement Shares. During any period in which the Prospectus relating to the Placement Shares is required to be delivered by a Designated Agent under the Securities Act with respect to a pending sale of the Placement Shares (including in circumstances where such requirement may be satisfied pursuant to Rule 172 under the Securities Act), the Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to cause the Placement Shares to be listed on the Exchange and to qualify the Placement Shares for sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions in the United States as each Agent reasonably designates and to continue such qualifications in effect so long as required for the distribution of the Placement Shares; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required in connection therewith to qualify as a foreign corporation or dealer in securities or file a general consent to service of process, or subject itself to taxation in any jurisdiction if it is not otherwise so subject.
(e) Delivery of Registration Statement and Prospectus. The Company will furnish to the Agents and their counsel (at the reasonable expense of the Company) copies of (i) the Registration Statement and the Prospectus (including all documents incorporated by reference therein) filed with the Commission on the date of this Agreement and (ii) all amendments and supplements to the Registration Statement or Prospectus that are filed with the Commission during any period in which a Prospectus relating to the Placement Shares is required to be delivered by a Designated Agent under the Securities Act (including all documents filed with the Commission during such period that are deemed to be incorporated by reference therein), in each case as soon as reasonably practicable and in such quantities as each Agent may from time to time reasonably request and, at the Agents’ reasonable request, will also furnish copies of the Prospectus to each exchange or market on which sales of the Placement Shares may be made; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required to furnish any document (other than the Prospectus) to the Agents to the extent such document is available on EDGAR.
(f) Earnings Statement. The Company will make generally available to its security holders as soon as practicable, but in any event not later than 15 months after the end of the Company’s current fiscal quarter, an earnings statement of the Company and its subsidiaries (which need not be audited) covering a 12-month period that complies with Section 11(a) and Rule 158 of the Securities Act. The terms “earnings statement” and “make generally available to its security holders” shall have the meanings set forth in Rule 158 under the Securities Act.
(g) Expenses. The Company, to the extent such expenses accrue prior to the termination of this Agreement in accordance with the provisions of Section 11 hereunder, will pay the following expenses all incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder, including, but not limited to, expenses relating to (i) the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement and each amendment and supplement thereto, of each Prospectus and of each amendment and supplement thereto, (ii) the preparation, issuance and delivery of the Placement Shares, including any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable upon the sale, issuance or delivery of the Placement Shares to the Agents, (iii) the fees and disbursements of the counsel, accountants and other advisors to the Company in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; (iv) the qualification of the Placement Shares under securities laws in accordance with the provisions of Section 7(d) of this Agreement, including filing fees (provided, however, that any fees or disbursements of counsel for the Agents in connection therewith shall be paid by the Agents except as set forth in (ix) below), (v) the printing and delivery to the Agents of copies of the Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto, and of this Agreement, (vi) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the listing or qualification of the Placement Shares for trading on the Exchange, (vii) the fees and expenses of the transfer agent or registrar for the Common Stock; (viii) filing fees and expenses, if any, of the Commission and the FINRA Corporate Financing Department, and (ix) the Company shall reimburse the Agents for the reasonable out-of-pocket fees and disbursements of the Agents’ counsel in an amount not to exceed $50,000 in the aggregate with respect to all Placement Shares sold pursuant to this Agreement, unless otherwise approved by the Company (such approval not to be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed).
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(h) Use of Proceeds. The Company will use the Net Proceeds as described in the Prospectus in the section entitled “Use of Proceeds.”
(i) Notice of Other Sales. During the pendency of any Placement Notice given hereunder, the Company shall provide the Agents notice as promptly as reasonably possible before it offers to sell, contracts to sell, sells, grants any option to sell or otherwise disposes of any shares of Common Stock (other than Placement Shares offered pursuant to the provisions of this Agreement) or securities convertible into or exchangeable for Common Stock, warrants or any rights to purchase or acquire Common Stock; provided, that such notice shall not be required in connection with the (i) issuance, grant or sale of Common Stock, options or other rights to purchase or otherwise acquire Common Stock, or Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of options or other equity awards, in each case granted pursuant to any stock option, stock bonus or other stock or compensatory plan or arrangement, whether now in effect or hereafter implemented or Common Stock issued upon the vesting or exercise of any such equity awards, (ii) issuance of securities in connection with an acquisition, merger or sale or purchase of assets which is described at the time of issuance in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, (iii) issuance or sale of Common Stock upon conversion of securities or the exercise of warrants, options or other rights then in effect or outstanding, and disclosed in filings by the Company available on EDGAR or otherwise in writing to the Agents, and (iv) issuance or sale of Common Stock pursuant to any dividend reinvestment and stock purchase plan that the Company has in effect or may adopt from time to time, provided that the implementation of such new plan is disclosed to the Agents in advance. If the Company notifies the Agents under this Section 7(i) of a proposed sale of shares of Common Stock or Common Stock equivalents, the Agents may suspend any offers and sales of Securities under this Agreement for a period of time deemed appropriate by the Agents.
(j) Change of Circumstances. The Company will, at any time during a fiscal quarter in which the Company intends to tender a Placement Notice or sell Placement Shares, advise the Designated Agent promptly after it shall have received notice or obtained knowledge thereof, of any information or fact that would materially and adversely affect any opinion, certificate, letter or other document required to be provided to the Agents pursuant to this Agreement.
(k) Due Diligence Cooperation. The Company will cooperate with any reasonable due diligence review conducted by the Agents or their agents in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby, including, without limitation, providing information and making available upon reasonable prior notice documents and senior corporate officers, during regular business hours and at the Company’s principal offices, as the Agents may reasonably request.
(l) Required Filings Relating to Placement of Placement Shares. The Company shall set forth in each Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed by the Company with the Commission in respect of any quarter in which sales of Placement Shares were made by or through the Agents under this Agreement, with regard to the relevant period, the amount of Placement Shares sold to or through the Agents, the Net Proceeds to the Company and the compensation payable by the Company to the Agents with respect to such sales of Placement Shares. To the extent that the filing of a prospectus supplement to the Prospectus with the Commission with respect to any sales of Placement Shares becomes required under Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, the Company agrees that, on or before such dates as the Securities Act shall require, the Company will (i) file a prospectus supplement to the Prospectus with the Commission under the applicable paragraph of Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, which prospectus supplement will set forth, with regard to the relevant period, the amount of Placement Shares sold to or through the Agents, the Net Proceeds to the Company and the compensation payable by the Company to the Agents with respect to such Placement Shares, and (ii) deliver such number of copies of each such prospectus supplement to each exchange or market on which such sales were effected as may be required by the rules or regulations of such exchange or market. The Company shall afford the Agents and their counsel with a reasonable opportunity to review and comment upon, shall consult with the Agents and their counsel on the form and substance of, any such filing prior to the issuance, filing or public disclosure thereof; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required to submit for review (A) any portion of any periodic reports filed with the Commission under the Exchange Act other than the specific disclosure relating to any sales of Placement Shares and (B) any disclosure contained in periodic reports filed with the Commission under the Exchange Act if it shall have previously provided the same disclosure for review in connection with a previous filing.
(m) Representation Dates; Certificate. On or prior to the date the first Placement Notice is given hereunder and each time the Company subsequently thereafter (i) amends or supplements the Registration Statement or the Prospectus relating to the Placement Shares (other than (A) a prospectus supplement filed in accordance with Section 7(l) of this Agreement or (B) a supplement or amendment that relates to an offering of securities other than the Placement Shares) by means of a post-effective amendment, sticker, or supplement but not by means of incorporation of document(s) by reference to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus relating to the Placement Shares; (ii) files an annual report on Form 10-K under the Exchange Act (including any Form 10-K/A containing amended financial information or a material amendment to the previously filed Form 10-K); (iii) files a quarterly report on Form 10-Q under the Exchange Act; or (iv) files a report on Form 8-K containing amended financial information (other than an earnings release, to “furnish” information pursuant to Items 2.02 or 7.01 of Form 8-K or to provide disclosure pursuant to Item 8.01 of Form 8-K relating to the reclassification of certain properties as discontinued operations in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 144) under the Exchange Act (each date of filing of one or more of the documents and each other date referred to in clauses (i) through (iv) shall be a “Representation Date”), the Company shall furnish the Agents within three (3) Trading Days after each Representation Date (but in the case of clause (iv) above only if the Agents reasonably determine that the information contained in such Form 8-K is material) with a certificate, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit 7(m). The requirement to provide a certificate under this Section 7(m) shall be waived for any Representation Date occurring at a time at which no Placement Notice is pending, which waiver shall continue until the earlier to occur of the date the Company delivers a Placement Notice hereunder (which for such calendar quarter shall be considered a Representation Date) and the next occurring Representation Date; provided, however, that such waiver shall not apply for any Representation Date on which the Company files its annual report on Form 10-K. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Company subsequently decides to sell Placement Shares following a Representation Date when the Company relied on such waiver and did not provide the Agents with a certificate under this Section 7(m), then before the Company delivers the Placement Notice or either Agent sells any Placement Shares, the Company shall provide the Agents with a certificate, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit 7(m), dated the date of the Placement Notice.
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(n) Legal Opinion. On or prior to the date the first Placement Notice is given hereunder, the Company shall cause to be furnished to the Agents (i) the written opinions and negative assurance of Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C., counsel to the Company, or other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Agents (“Company Counsel”), and (ii) the written opinions and negative assurance of Sagittarius IP, intellectual property counsel to the Company, or other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Agents (“Company IP Counsel”), in each case in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Agents. Thereafter, within three (3) Trading Days after each Representation Date with respect to which the Company is obligated to deliver a certificate pursuant to Section 7(m) for which no waiver is applicable pursuant to Section 7(m), and not more than once per calendar quarter, the Company shall cause to be furnished to the Agents the written opinions and negative assurance of Company Counsel and written opinions and negative assurance of Company IP Counsel substantially in the form previously agreed between the Company and the Agents, modified, as necessary, to relate to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented; provided, however, that if Company Counsel or Company IP Counsel has previously furnished to the Agents such written opinions and negative assurance substantially in the form previously agreed between the Company and the Agents, such counsel may, in respect of any future Representation Date, furnish the Agents with a letter (a “Reliance Letter”) in lieu of such opinions and negative assurance to the effect that the Agents may rely on the prior opinions and negative assurance of such counsel delivered pursuant to this Section 7(n) to the same extent as if it were dated the date of such Reliance Letter (except that statements in such prior opinion shall be deemed to relate to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus as amended or supplemented to the date of such Reliance Letter).
(o) Comfort Letter. On or prior to the date the first Placement Notice is given hereunder and within three (3) Trading Days after each subsequent Representation Date with respect to which the Company is obligated to deliver a certificate pursuant to Section 7(m) for which no waiver is applicable pursuant to Section 7(m), the Company shall cause its independent accountants to furnish the Agents letters (the “Comfort Letters”), dated the date that the Comfort Letter is delivered, in form and substance satisfactory to the Agents, (i) confirming that they are an independent registered public accounting firm within the meaning of the Securities Act, the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations of the PCAOB and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, (ii) stating, as of such date, the conclusions and findings of such firm with respect to the financial information and other matters ordinarily covered by accountants’ “comfort letters” to the Agents in connection with registered public offerings (the first such letter, the “Initial Comfort Letter”) and (iii) updating the Initial Comfort Letter with any information that would have been included in the Initial Comfort Letter had it been given on such date and modified as necessary to relate to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, as amended and supplemented to the date of such letter.
(p) Market Activities. The Company will not, directly or indirectly, (i) take any action designed to cause or result in, or that constitutes or might reasonably be expected to constitute, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Common Stock or (ii) sell, bid for, or purchase the Placement Shares to be issued and sold pursuant to this Agreement, or pay anyone any compensation for soliciting purchases of the Placement Shares other than the Agents.
(q) Insurance. The Company and its subsidiaries shall maintain, or caused to be maintained, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as is reasonable and customary for the conduct of its business and the value of its properties.
(r) Compliance with Laws. The Company and each of its subsidiaries shall maintain, or cause to be maintained, all material environmental permits, licenses and other authorizations required by federal, state and local law in order to conduct their businesses as described in the Prospectus, and the Company and each of its subsidiaries shall conduct their businesses, or cause their businesses to be conducted, in substantial compliance with such permits, licenses and authorizations and with applicable environmental laws, except where the failure to maintain or be in compliance with such permits, licenses and authorizations would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change.
(s) Investment Company Act. The Company will conduct its affairs in such a manner so as to reasonably ensure that neither it nor its subsidiaries is or, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Placement Shares and the application of proceeds therefrom as described in the Prospectus, will be, an “investment company” within the meaning of such term under the Investment Company Act.
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(t) Securities Act and Exchange Act. The Company will use its best efforts to comply with all requirements imposed upon it by the Securities Act and the Exchange Act as from time to time in force, so far as necessary to permit the continuance of sales of, or dealings in, the Placement Shares as contemplated by the provisions hereof and the Prospectus.
(u) No Offer to Sell. Other than the Prospectus, neither the Agents nor the Company (including its agents and representatives, other than the Agents in their capacity as such) will make, use, prepare, authorize, approve or refer to any written communication (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act), required to be filed with the Commission, that constitutes an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy Placement Shares hereunder.
(v) Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The Company and its subsidiaries will use their best efforts to comply with all effective applicable provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
(w) New Registration Statement. If immediately prior to the third anniversary of the initial effective date of the Registration Statement, any of the Placement Shares remain unsold, the sale of the Placement Shares under this Agreement shall automatically be suspended unless and until the Company files a new shelf registration statement relating to the Placement Shares and such new registration statement is declared effective by the Commission. References herein to the Registration Statement shall include such new shelf registration statement. If any such new shelf registration statement becomes effective prior to the termination date of this Agreement, the Company agrees to notify the Agents of such effective date.
8. Conditions to the Agents’ Obligations. The obligations of the Agents hereunder with respect to a Placement will be subject to the continuing accuracy and completeness of the representations and warranties made by the Company herein (other than those representations and warranties made as of a specified date or time), to the due performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, to the completion by the Agents of a due diligence review satisfactory to the Agents in their reasonable judgment, and to the continuing reasonable satisfaction (or waiver by the Agents in their sole discretion) of the following additional conditions:
(a) Registration Statement Effective. The Registration Statement shall be effective and shall be available for the sale of all Placement Shares contemplated to be issued by any Placement Notice.
(b) Securities Act Filings Made. The Company shall have filed with the Commission the ATM Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 424(b) (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) of the Securities Act). All other filings with the Commission required by Rule 424 under the Securities Act to have been filed prior to the issuance of any Placement Notice hereunder shall have been made within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 424.
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(c) No Material Notices. None of the following events shall have occurred and be continuing: (i) receipt by the Company or any of its subsidiaries of any request for additional information from the Commission or any other federal or state governmental authority during the period of effectiveness of the Registration Statement, the response to which would require any post-effective amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus; (ii) the issuance by the Commission or any other federal or state governmental authority of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or the initiation of any proceedings for that purpose; (iii) receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the suspension of the qualification or exemption from qualification of any of the Placement Shares for sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for such purpose; (iv) the occurrence of any event that makes any material statement made in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any material document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated therein by reference untrue in any material respect or that requires the making of any changes in the Registration Statement, related Prospectus or such documents so that, in the case of the Registration Statement, it will not contain any materially untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading and, that in the case of the Prospectus, it will not contain any materially untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, which changes shall not, as of the time of the Placement, have been so made.
(d) No Misstatement or Material Omission. Neither Agent shall have advised the Company that the Registration Statement or Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, contains an untrue statement of fact that in such Agent’s reasonable opinion is material, or omits to state a fact that in such Agent’s reasonable opinion is material and is required to be stated therein or is necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.
(e) Material Changes. Except as contemplated in the Prospectus, or disclosed in the Company’s reports filed with the Commission, there shall not have been any Material Adverse Change or any development that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change, or any downgrading in or withdrawal of the rating assigned to any of the Company’s securities (other than asset backed securities) by any rating organization or a public announcement by any rating organization that it has under surveillance or review its rating of any of the Company’s securities (other than asset backed securities), the effect of which, in the case of any such action by a rating organization described above, in the reasonable judgment of the Agents (without relieving the Company of any obligation or liability it may otherwise have), is so material as to make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering of the Placement Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated by this Agreement and the Prospectus.
(f) Company Counsel Legal Opinion. The Agents shall have received the opinions and negative assurances of Company Counsel required to be delivered pursuant Section 7(n) on or before the date on which such delivery of such opinions and negative assurances is required pursuant to Section 7(n).
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(g) Company IP Counsel Legal Opinion. The Agents shall have received the opinions and negative assurances of Company IP Counsel required to be delivered pursuant Section 7(n) on or before the date on which such delivery of such opinions and negative assurances is required pursuant to Section 7(n).
(h) Agents’ Counsel Legal Opinion. The Agents shall have received from Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., counsel to the Agents, on or before the date on which the delivery of the Company Counsel legal opinion is required pursuant to Section 7(n), such opinions and negative assurances with respect to such matters as the Agents may reasonably require, and the Company shall have furnished to such counsel such documents as they request for enabling them to pass upon such matters.
(i) Comfort Letter. The Agents shall have received the Comfort Letter required to be delivered pursuant Section 7(o) on or before the date on which such delivery of such Comfort Letter is required pursuant to Section 7(o).
(j) Representation Certificate. The Agents shall have received the certificate required to be delivered pursuant to Section 7(m) on or before the date on which delivery of such certificate is required pursuant to Section 7(m).
(k) Secretary’s Certificate. On or prior to the date the first Placement Notice is given hereunder, the Agents shall have received a certificate, signed on behalf of the Company by its corporate Secretary, certifying as to (i) the Certificate of Incorporation of the Company, (ii) the By-laws of the Company, (iii) the resolutions of the Board of Directors of the Company (or a committee thereof) authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the issuance of the Placement Shares and (iv) the incumbency of the officers duly authorized to execute this Agreement and the other documents contemplated by this Agreement.
(l) No Suspension. Trading in the Common Stock shall not have been suspended on the Exchange and the Common Stock shall not have been delisted from the Exchange.
(m) Other Materials. On each date on which the Company is required to deliver a certificate pursuant to Section 7(m), the Company shall have furnished to the Agents such appropriate further opinions, certificates, letters and documents as the Agents may have reasonably requested and which are usually and customarily furnished by an issuer of securities in connection with a securities offering of the type contemplated hereby. All such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents shall have been in compliance with the provisions hereof. The Company will furnish the Agents with such conformed copies of such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents as the Agents shall have reasonably requested.
(n) Approval for Listing. The Placement Shares shall have been approved for listing on the Exchange, subject only to notice of issuance.
(o) No Termination Event. There shall not have occurred any event that would permit the Agents to terminate this Agreement pursuant to Section 11(a).
(p) FINRA. FINRA shall not have raised any objection with respect to the fairness or reasonableness of the terms and arrangements related to the sale of the Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement.
9. Indemnification and Contribution.
(a) Company Indemnification. The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Agent, its directors, officers, members, partners, and employees and agents and each person, if any, who controls any Agent within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any and all losses, claims, liabilities, expenses and damages (including, but not limited to, any and all reasonable investigative, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any and all amounts paid in settlement (in accordance with Section 9(c)) of, any action, suit or proceeding between any of the indemnified parties and any indemnifying parties or between any indemnified party and any third party, or otherwise, or any claim asserted), as and when incurred, to which any Agent, or any such person, may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or other federal or state statutory law or regulation, at common law or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, liabilities, expenses or damages arise out of or are based upon (x) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto or in any free writing prospectus or in any application or other document executed by or on behalf of the Company or based on written information furnished by or on behalf of the Company filed in any jurisdiction in order to qualify the Common Stock under the securities laws thereof or filed with the Commission, (y) the omission or alleged omission to state in any such document a material fact required to be stated in it or necessary to make the statements in it not misleading or (z) any breach by any of the indemnifying parties of any of their respective representations, warranties and agreements contained in this Agreement; provided, however, that this indemnity agreement shall not apply to the extent that such loss, claim, liability, expense or damage arises from the sale of the Placement Shares pursuant to this Agreement and is caused directly by an untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information relating to the Agents and furnished to the Company by the Agents expressly for inclusion in any document as described in clause (x) of this Section 9(a). This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability that the Company might otherwise have.
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(b) Agent Indemnification. Each Agent, severally and not jointly, agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company and its directors and each officer of the Company that signed the Registration Statement, and each person, if any, who (i) controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act or (ii) is controlled by or is under common control with the Company (each, a “Company Affiliate”) from and against any and all losses, claims, liabilities, expenses and damages (including, but not limited to, any and all reasonable investigative, legal and other expenses incurred in connection with, and any and all amounts paid in settlement (in accordance with Section 9(c)) of, any action, suit or proceeding between any of the indemnified parties and any indemnifying parties or between any indemnified party and any third party, or otherwise, or any claim asserted), as and when incurred, to which any such Company Affiliate, may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or other federal or state statutory law or regulation, at common law or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, liabilities, expenses or damages arise out of or are based upon (x) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or (y) the omission or alleged omission to state in any such document a material fact required to be stated in it or necessary to make the statements in it not misleading; provided, however, that this indemnity agreement shall apply only to the extent that such loss, claim, liability, expense or damage is caused directly by an untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information relating to such Agent and furnished to the Company by such Agent expressly for inclusion in any document as described in clause (x) of this Section 9(b), which the Company acknowledges consists solely of the material referred to in Schedule 5 hereto, as updated from time to time.
(c) Procedure. Any party that proposes to assert the right to be indemnified under this Section 9 will, promptly after receipt of notice of commencement of any action against such party in respect of which a claim is to be made against an indemnifying party or parties under this Section 9, notify each such indemnifying party of the commencement of such action, enclosing a copy of all papers served, but the omission so to notify such indemnifying party will not relieve the indemnifying party from (i) any liability that it might have to any indemnified party otherwise than under this Section 9 and (ii) any liability that it may have to any indemnified party under the foregoing provision of this Section 9 unless, and only to the extent that, such omission results in the forfeiture or material impairment of substantive rights or defenses by the indemnifying party. If any such action is brought against any indemnified party and it notifies the indemnifying party of its commencement, the indemnifying party will be entitled to participate in and, to the extent that it elects by delivering written notice to the indemnified party promptly after receiving notice of the commencement of the action from the indemnified party, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense of the action, with counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party, and after notice from the indemnifying party to the indemnified party of its election to assume the defense, the indemnifying party will not be liable to the indemnified party for any legal or other expenses except as provided below and except for the reasonable costs of investigation subsequently incurred by the indemnified party in connection with the defense. The indemnified party will have the right to employ its own counsel in any such action, but the fees, expenses and other charges of such counsel will be at the expense of such indemnified party unless (1) the employment of counsel by the indemnified party has been authorized in writing by the indemnifying party, (2) the indemnified party has reasonably concluded (based on advice of counsel) that there may be legal defenses available to it or other indemnified parties that are different from or in addition to those available to the indemnifying party, (3) a conflict or potential conflict exists (based on advice of counsel to the indemnified party) between the indemnified party and the indemnifying party (in which case the indemnifying party will not have the right to direct the defense of such action on behalf of the indemnified party) such that representation of such indemnified party and any indemnifying party(s) by the same counsel would be inappropriate under applicable standards of professional conduct (whether or not such representation by the same counsel has been proposed), or (4) the indemnifying party has not in fact employed counsel to assume the defense of such action within a reasonable time after receiving notice of the commencement of the action, in each of which cases the reasonable and documented out-of-pocket fees, disbursements and other charges of counsel will be at the expense of the indemnifying party or parties. It is understood that the indemnifying party or parties shall not, in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the reasonable and documented out-of-pocket fees, disbursements and other charges of more than one separate firm admitted to practice in such jurisdiction at any one time for all such indemnified party or parties. All such reasonable and documented out-of-pocket fees, disbursements and other charges will be reimbursed by the indemnifying party promptly after the indemnifying party receives a written invoice relating to the fees, disbursements and other charges in reasonable detail. An indemnifying party will not, in any event, be liable for any settlement of any action or claim effected without its written consent. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of each indemnified party, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment in any pending or threatened claim, action or proceeding relating to the matters contemplated by this Section 9 (whether or not any indemnified party is a party thereto), unless such settlement, compromise or consent includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising or that may arise out of such claim, action or proceeding.
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(d) Contribution. In order to provide for just and equitable contribution in circumstances in which the indemnification provided for in the foregoing paragraphs of this Section 9 is applicable in accordance with its terms but for any reason is held to be unavailable from the Company or the Agents, the Company and the Agents will contribute to the total losses, claims, liabilities, expenses and damages (including any investigative, legal and other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with, and any amount paid in settlement of, any action, suit or proceeding or any claim asserted, but after deducting any contribution received by the Company from persons other than the Agents, such as persons who control the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act, officers of the Company who signed the Registration Statement and directors of the Company, who also may be liable for contribution) to which the Company and the Agents may be subject in such proportion as shall be appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Agents on the other. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Agents on the other hand shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total Net Proceeds from the sale of the Placement Shares (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total compensation received by each Agent from the sale of Placement Shares on behalf of the Company. If, but only if, the allocation provided by the foregoing sentence is not permitted by applicable law, the allocation of contribution shall be made in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in the foregoing sentence but also the relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Agents, on the other, with respect to the statements or omission that resulted in such loss, claim, liability, expense or damage, or action in respect thereof, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations with respect to such offering. Such relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the 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 the Agents, the intent of the parties and their relative knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Company and the Agents agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this Section 9(d) were to be determined by pro rata allocation or by any other method of allocation that does not take into account the equitable considerations referred to herein. The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the loss, claim, liability, expense, or damage, or action in respect thereof, referred to above in this Section 9(d) shall be deemed to include, for the purpose of this Section 9(d), any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim to the extent consistent with Section 9(c) hereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 9(d), the Agents shall not be required to contribute any amount in excess of the commissions received by it under this Agreement and no person found guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) will be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. For purposes of this Section 9(d), any person who controls a party to this Agreement within the meaning of the Securities Act will have the same rights to contribution as that party (and any officers, directors, members, partners, employees or agents of the Agents and each broker dealer affiliate of the Agents will have the same rights to contribution as the Agents), and each officer of the Company who signed the Registration Statement and each director of the Company will have the same rights to contribution as the Company, subject in each case to the provisions hereof. Any party entitled to contribution, promptly after receipt of notice of commencement of any action against such party in respect of which a claim for contribution may be made under this Section 9(d), will notify any such party or parties from whom contribution may be sought, but the omission to so notify will not relieve that party or parties from whom contribution may be sought from any other obligation it or they may have under this Section 9(d) except to the extent that the failure to so notify such other party materially prejudiced the substantive rights or defenses of the party from whom contribution is sought. Except for a settlement entered into pursuant to the last sentence of Section 9(c) hereof, no party will be liable for contribution with respect to any action or claim settled without its written consent if such consent is required pursuant to Section 9(c) hereof. The Agents’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 9(d) are several in proportion to the respective number of Placement Shares they have sold hereunder, and not joint.
10. Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery. The indemnity and contribution agreements contained in Section 9 of this Agreement and all representations and warranties of the Company and the Agents herein or in certificates delivered pursuant hereto shall survive, as of their respective dates, regardless of (i) any investigation made by or on behalf of the Agents, any controlling person of the Agents, or the Company (or any of their respective officers, directors, members or controlling persons), (ii) delivery and acceptance of the Placement Shares and payment therefor or (iii) any termination of this Agreement.
11. Termination.
(a) The Agents shall have the right by giving notice as hereinafter specified at any time to terminate this Agreement if (i) any Material Adverse Change, or any development that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Change has occurred that, in the reasonable judgment of the Agents, may materially impair the ability of the Agents to sell the Placement Shares hereunder, (ii) the Company shall have failed, refused or been unable to perform any agreement on its part to be performed hereunder; provided, however, in the case of any failure of the Company to deliver (or cause another person to deliver) any certification, opinion, or letter required under Sections 7(m), 7(n), or 7(o), the Agents’ right to terminate shall not arise unless such failure to deliver (or cause to be delivered) continues for more than thirty (30) days from the date such delivery was required, (iii) any other condition of the Agents’ obligations hereunder is not fulfilled, or (iv) any suspension or limitation of trading in the Placement Shares or in securities generally on the Exchange shall have occurred (including automatic halt in trading pursuant to market-decline triggers, other than those in which solely program trading is temporarily halted), or a major disruption of securities settlements or clearing services in the United States shall have occurred, or minimum prices for trading have been fixed on the Exchange. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 7(g) (Expenses), Section 9 (Indemnification and Contribution), Section 10 (Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery), Section 11(f), Section 16 (Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction) and Section 17 (Waiver of Jury Trial) hereof shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination. If either Agent elects to terminate this Agreement as provided in this Section 11(a), such Agent shall provide the required notice as specified in Section 12 (Notices). For the avoidance of doubt, the termination by one Agent of its rights and obligations under this Agreement pursuant to this Section 11(a) shall not affect the rights and obligations of the other Agent under this Agreement.
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(b) The Company shall have the right, by giving five (5) days’ notice as hereinafter specified in Section 12, to terminate this Agreement in its sole discretion at any time after the date of this Agreement. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 7(g) (Expenses), Section 9 (Indemnification and Contribution), Section 10 (Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery), Section 11(f), Section 16 (Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction) and Section 17 (Waiver of Jury Trial) hereof shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination. Nothing in this Section 11(b) shall limit the ability of the Company to suspend offers and sales of Placement Shares pursuant to the provisions of Section 4.
(c) The Agents shall have the right, by giving five (5) days’ notice as hereinafter specified in Section 12, to terminate this Agreement in its sole discretion at any time after the date of this Agreement. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 7(g) (Expenses), Section 9 (Indemnification and Contribution), Section 10 (Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery), Section 11(f), Section 16 (Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction) and Section 17 (Waiver of Jury Trial) hereof shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination. For the avoidance of doubt, the termination by one Agent of its rights and obligations under this Agreement pursuant to this Section 11(c) shall not affect the rights and obligations of the other Agent under this Agreement.
(d) Unless earlier terminated pursuant to this Section 11, this Agreement shall automatically terminate upon the issuance and sale of all of the Placement Shares to or through the Agents on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth herein; provided that the provisions of Section 7(g) (Expenses), Section 9 (Indemnification and Contribution), Section 10 (Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery), Section 11(f), Section 16 (Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction) and Section 17 (Waiver of Jury Trial) hereof shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination.
(e) This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect unless terminated pursuant to Sections 11(a), (b), (c) or (d) above or otherwise by mutual agreement of the parties; provided, however, that any such termination by mutual agreement shall in all cases be deemed to provide that Section 7(g) (Expenses), Section 9 (Indemnification and Contribution), Section 10 (Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery), Section 11(f), Section 16 (Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction) and Section 17 (Waiver of Jury Trial) shall remain in full force and effect. Upon termination of this Agreement, the Company shall not have any liability to the Agents for any discount, commission or other compensation with respect to any Placement Shares not otherwise sold by an Agent under this Agreement.
(f) Any termination of this Agreement shall be effective on the date specified in such notice of termination; provided, however, that such termination shall not be effective until the close of business on the date of receipt of such notice by the Agents or the Company, as the case may be, provided, further, that the Agents shall suspend any ongoing placement as soon as practicable following receipt of the notice of termination (and in any event by the close of business on the date of receipt). If such termination shall occur prior to the Settlement Date for any sale of Placement Shares, such termination shall not become effective until the close of business on such Settlement Date and such Placement Shares shall settle in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.
12. Notices. All notices or other communications required or permitted to be given by any party to any other party pursuant to the terms of this Agreement shall be in writing, unless otherwise specified, and if sent to the Agents, shall be delivered to:
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
85 Broad Street, 26th Floor
New York, NY 10004
Attention: Peter Vogelsang, Office of General Counsel
Email: peter.vogelsang@opco.com
and:
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.
499 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Attention: Capital Markets
Facsimile: (212) 307-3730
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with copies (which shall not constitute notice) to:
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.
499 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Attention: General Counsel
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
666 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10017
Attention: Ivan K. Blumenthal, Esq.
Email: IKBlumenthal@mintz.com
and if to the Company, shall be delivered to:
VolitionRx Limited
93-95 Gloucester Place
London W1U 6JQ
Attention: Cameron Reynolds
Email: c.reynolds@volitionrx.com
with a copy (which shall not constitute notice) to:
Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C.
660 Newport Center Drive, Suite 1600
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Attention: Marc G. Alcser, Esq.
Email: malcser@sycr.com
Each party may change such address for notices by sending to the other party to this Agreement written notice of a new address for such purpose. Each such notice or other communication shall be deemed given (i) when delivered personally, by email, or by verifiable facsimile transmission (with an original to follow) on or before 4:30 p.m., New York City time, on a Business Day or, if such day is not a Business Day, on the next succeeding Business Day, (ii) on the next Business Day after timely delivery to a nationally-recognized overnight courier and (iii) on the Business Day actually received if deposited in the U.S. mail (certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid). For purposes of this Agreement, “Business Day” shall mean any day on which the Exchange and commercial banks in the City of New York are open for business.
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An electronic communication (“Electronic Notice”) shall be deemed written notice for purposes of this Section 12 if sent to the electronic mail address specified by the receiving party under separate cover. Electronic Notice shall be deemed received at the time the party sending Electronic Notice receives confirmation of receipt by the receiving party (other than pursuant to auto-reply). Any party receiving Electronic Notice may request and shall be entitled to receive the notice on paper, in a nonelectronic form (“Nonelectronic Notice”) which shall be sent to the requesting party within ten (10) days of receipt of the written request for Nonelectronic Notice.
13. Successors and Assigns. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Company and the Agents and their respective successors and permitted assigns and, as to Section 5(b) and Section 9, the other indemnified parties specified therein. References to any of the parties contained in this Agreement shall be deemed to include the successors and permitted assigns of such party. Nothing in this Agreement, express or implied, is intended to confer upon any other person any rights, remedies, obligations or liabilities under or by reason of this Agreement, except as expressly provided in this Agreement. Neither party may assign its rights or obligations under this Agreement without the prior written consent of the other party; provided, however, that any Agent may assign its rights and obligations hereunder to an affiliate of such Agent without obtaining the Company’s consent.
14. Adjustments for Share Splits. The parties acknowledge and agree that all share-related numbers contained in this Agreement shall be adjusted to take into account any share split, share dividend or similar event effected with respect to the Common Stock.
15. Entire Agreement; Amendment; Severability. This Agreement (including all schedules and exhibits attached hereto and Placement Notices issued pursuant hereto) and any other writing entered into by the parties relating to this Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and supersedes all other prior and contemporaneous agreements and undertakings, both written and oral, among the parties hereto with regard to the subject matter hereof. Neither this Agreement nor any term hereof may be amended except pursuant to a written instrument executed by the Company and the Agents. In the event that any one or more of the provisions contained herein, or the application thereof in any circumstance, is held invalid, illegal or unenforceable as written by a court of competent jurisdiction, then such provision shall be given full force and effect to the fullest possible extent that it is valid, legal and enforceable, and the remainder of the terms and provisions herein shall be construed as if such invalid, illegal or unenforceable term or provision was not contained herein, but only to the extent that giving effect to such provision and the remainder of the terms and provisions hereof shall be in accordance with the intent of the parties as reflected in this Agreement.
16. Applicable Law; Consent to Jurisdiction. This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the internal laws of the State of New York, without regard to the principles of conflicts of laws. Each party hereby irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts sitting in the City of New York, Borough of Manhattan, for the adjudication of any dispute hereunder or in connection with any transaction contemplated hereby, and hereby irrevocably waives, and agrees not to assert in any suit, action or proceeding, any claim that it is not personally subject to the jurisdiction of any such court, that such suit, action or proceeding is brought in an inconvenient forum or that the venue of such suit, action or proceeding is improper. Each party hereby irrevocably waives personal service of process and consents to process being served in any such suit, action or proceeding by mailing a copy thereof (certified or registered mail, return receipt requested) to such party at the address in effect for notices to it under this Agreement and agrees that such service shall constitute good and sufficient service of process and notice thereof. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to limit in any way any right to serve process in any manner permitted by law.
17. Waiver of Jury Trial. The Company and the Agents each hereby irrevocably waives any right it may have to a trial by jury in respect of any claim based upon or arising out of this Agreement or any transaction contemplated hereby.
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18. Absence of Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that:
(a) the Agents are acting solely as agents in connection with the sale of the Placement Shares contemplated by this Agreement and the process leading to such transactions, and no fiduciary or advisory relationship between the Company or any of its respective affiliates, stockholders (or other equity holders), creditors or employees or any other party, on the one hand, and the Agents, on the other hand, has been or will be created in respect of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, irrespective of whether the Agents have advised or is advising the Company on other matters, and the Agents have no obligation to the Company with respect to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement and in any schedule or exhibit attached hereto;
(b) the Company is capable of evaluating and understanding and understands and accepts the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement;
(c) the Agents have not provided any legal, accounting, regulatory or tax advice with respect to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, and the Company has consulted its own legal, accounting, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent it has deemed appropriate;
(d) the Company has been advised and is aware that the Agents and their affiliates are engaged in a broad range of transactions which may involve interests that differ from those of the Company and that the Agents have no obligation to disclose such interests and transactions to the Company by virtue of any fiduciary, advisory or agency relationship; and
(e) the Company waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims it may have against the Agents, for breach of fiduciary duty or alleged breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the sale of Placement Shares under this Agreement and agrees that the Agents shall have no liability (whether direct or indirect, in contract, tort or otherwise) to the Company in respect of such a fiduciary claim or to any person asserting a fiduciary duty claim on behalf of or in right of the Company, including stockholders, partners, employees or creditors of the Company.
19. Use of Information. The Agents may not disclose any information gained in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, including due diligence, to any third party other than its legal counsel advising it on this Agreement unless expressly approved by the Company in writing.
20. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument. Delivery of an executed Agreement by one party to the other may be made by facsimile transmission or email of a .pdf attachment.
21. Effect of Headings; Knowledge of the Company. The section and Exhibit headings herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction hereof. All references in this Agreement to the “knowledge of the Company” or the “Company’s knowledge” or similar qualifiers shall mean the actual knowledge of the directors and executive officers of the Company.
22. Definitions. As used in this Agreement, the following term has the meaning set forth below:
(a) “Applicable Time” means the date of this Agreement, each Representation Date, each date on which a Placement Notice is given, each Point of Sale, and each Settlement Date.
(b) “Designated Agent” means, as of any given time, an Agent that the Company has designated as sales agent to sell Placement Shares pursuant to the terms of this Agreement.
[Remainder of Page Intentionally Blank]
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If the foregoing correctly sets forth the understanding between the Company and the Agents, please so indicate in the space provided below for that purpose, whereupon this letter shall constitute a binding agreement between the Company and the Agents.
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| Very truly yours, |
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| VOLITIONRX LIMITED | |||
| By: | /s/ Cameron Reynolds | ||
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| Name: | Cameron Reynolds | |
| Title: | President and Chief Executive Officer | ||
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| ACCEPTED as of the date first-above written: |
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| OPPENHEIMER & CO. INC. |
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| By: | /s/ Michael A. Margolis, R.PH. |
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| Name: | Michael A. Margolis, R.PH. |
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| Title: | Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of Healthcare Investment Banking |
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| CANTOR FITZGERALD & CO. |
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| By: | /s/ Sage Kelly |
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| Name: | Sage Kelly |
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| Title: | Senior Managing Director, Head of Investment Banking |
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SCHEDULE 1
FORM OF PLACEMENT NOTICE
| From: | VolitionRx Limited |
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| To: | Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. |
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| Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. |
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| Subject: | At-The-Market Offering—Placement Notice |
Gentlemen:
Pursuant to the terms and subject to the conditions contained in the Equity Distribution Agreement between VolitionRx Limited, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. and Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., dated September 24, 2021 (the “Agreement”), I hereby request on behalf of the Company that the Designated Agent sell up to [___] shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at a minimum market price of $[ ] per share, during the period beginning [MONTH/DAY/TIME] and ending [MONTH/DAY/TIME]. [INCLUDE ANY ADDITIONAL TERMS OR INFORMATION AS THE COMPANY DEEMS APPROPRIATE WITH RESPECT TO A PLACEMENT]
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SCHEDULE 2
Notice Parties
VolitionRx Limited
Cameron Reynolds c.reynolds@volitionrx.com
Dr. Martin Faulkes m.faulkes@volitionrx.com
With a copy to r.rootsaert@volitionrx.com and malcser@sycr.com
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
DL-EquityATMOffering@opco.com
With a copy to ikblumenthal@mintz.com
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.
Sameer Vasudev svasudev@cantor.com
With a copy to CFControlledEquityOffering@cantor.com
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SCHEDULE 3
Compensation
The Agents shall be paid compensation equal to up to 3% of the gross proceeds from the sales of Placement Shares pursuant to the terms of this Agreement and shall be reimbursed for certain expenses in accordance with Section 7(g) of this Agreement.
The foregoing rate of compensation shall not apply when the Agents act as principal, in which case the Company may sell the Placement Shares to the Agents as principal at a price agreed upon at the relevant Point of Sale pursuant to the applicable Placement Notice.
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SCHEDULE 4
Schedule of Subsidiaries
| Name of Subsidiary |
| State or other Jurisdiction of |
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| Singapore Volition Pte. Limited, a private company limited by shares |
| Singapore |
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| Volition Global Services SRL, a private limited liability company |
| Belgium |
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| Belgian Volition SRL, a private limited liability company |
| Belgium |
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| Volition Diagnostics UK Limited, a limited company incorporated and registered in England and Wales |
| United Kingdom |
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| Volition America, Inc., a Delaware corporation |
| Delaware |
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| Volition Veterinary Diagnostics Development LLC, a Texas limited liability company |
| Texas |
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| Volition Germany GmbH (formerly Octamer GmbH), a company with limited liability organized under the laws of Germany |
| Germany |
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SCHEDULE 5
Information Provided By Agents
The parties acknowledge and agree that, for purposes of Section 6(b) and Section 9(b) of this Agreement, there is no information provided by the Agents.
The information in this Schedule shall be updated from time to time in connection with the filing of a new Prospectus or otherwise as necessary.
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EXHIBIT 7(M)
REPRESENTATION DATE CERTIFICATE
VOLITIONRX LIMITED
REPRESENTATION DATE CERTIFICATE
September [ ], 2021
The undersigned, the duly qualified, appointed and acting President and Chief Executive Officer of VOLITIONRX LIMITED, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), does hereby certify in such capacity and on behalf of the Company, pursuant to Section 7(m) of the Equity Distribution Agreement, dated September 24, 2021 (the “Equity Distribution Agreement”), by and among the Company, Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and Oppenheimer & Co., Inc., that:
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| 1. | The representations and warranties of the Company in Section 6 of the Equity Distribution Agreement (A) to the extent such representations and warranties are subject to qualifications and exceptions contained therein relating to materiality or Material Adverse Change, are true and correct on and as of the date hereof with the same force and effect as if expressly made on and as of the date hereof, except for those representations and warranties that speak solely as of a specific date and which were true and correct as of such date, (B) to the extent such representations and warranties are not subject to any qualifications or exceptions, are true and correct in all material respects as of the date hereof as if made on and as of the date hereof with the same force and effect as if expressly made on and as of the date hereof except for those representations and warranties that speak solely as of a specific date and which were true and correct as of such date, and (C) are subject to exceptions disclosed in the Prospectus and the Registration Statement with respect to Sections 6(hh) and 6(ii); |
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| 2. | The Company has complied in all material respects with all agreements and satisfied in all material respects all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied pursuant to the Equity Distribution Agreement at or prior to the date hereof; |
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| 3. | As of the date hereof, (i) neither the Registration Statement nor the Prospectus contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading and (ii) to the Company’s knowledge, no event has occurred as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Registration Statement or the Prospectus in order to make the statements therein not untrue or misleading for clause (i) above, to be true and correct; |
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| 4. | There has been no Material Adverse Change since the date as of which information is given in the Prospectus (including documents incorporated therein), as amended or supplemented; |
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| 5. | As of the date hereof, the Company does not possess any material non-public information; and |
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| 6. | The aggregate offering price of the Placement Shares that may be issued and sold pursuant to the Equity Distribution Agreement and the maximum number or amount of Placement Shares that may be sold pursuant to the Equity Distribution Agreement have been duly authorized by the Company’s board of directors or a duly authorized committee thereof. |
Terms used herein and not defined herein have the meanings ascribed to them in the Equity Distribution Agreement.
[Signature Page Follows]
| 31 |
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have signed this Representation Date Certificate as of the date first set forth above.
| VOLITIONRX LIMITED | |||
| By: | |||
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| Name: | Cameron Reynolds | |
| Title: | President and Chief Executive Officer | ||
| 32 |
EXHIBIT 5.1
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| Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth 660 Newport Center Drive, Suite 1600 stradlinglaw.com |
September 24. 2021
VolitionRx Limited
13215 Bee Cave Parkway
Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B
Austin, Texas 78738
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| Re: | Securities Registered under Registration Statement on Form S-3 |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
In connection with the registration statement on Form S-3 (the “Registration Statement”) to be filed by VolitionRx Limited, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on September 24, 2021 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), you have requested our opinion with respect to the matters set forth below.
You have provided us with a draft of the Registration Statement in the form in which it will be filed, which includes the prospectus (the “Prospectus”). The Prospectus provides that it may be supplemented by one or more supplements to the Prospectus (each, a “Prospectus Supplement”). The Registration Statement, including the Prospectus, as supplemented by one or more Prospectus Supplements, will provide for the registration by the Company of up to $100,000,000 initial aggregate offering price of (i) shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Common Stock”); (ii) warrants to purchase shares of Common Stock (the “Warrants”); and/or (iii) units comprised of one or more shares of Common Stock and/or Warrants (the “Units”), or any combination of the foregoing, plus any additional Common Stock, Warrants and/or Units that may be registered pursuant to any subsequent registration statement that the Company may hereafter file with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (collectively, the “Securities”). The Securities will be offered and sold, either individually or collectively, pursuant to one or more definitive purchase agreements, subscription agreements, underwriting agreements, indentures, warrant agreements, unit agreements or similar agreements (any such agreement, a “Purchase Agreement”).
In our capacity as your counsel in connection with such registration, we are familiar with the proceedings taken and proposed to be taken by the Company in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement (including the Prospectus), the preparation and filing of the Prospectus Supplement(s), and the authorization, issuance and sale of the Securities. For the purposes of this opinion, with your consent, we have assumed that (i) at the time any Securities are sold pursuant to the Registration Statement (any such time, the “Relevant Time”), the Registration Statement and any supplements and amendments thereto (including any post-effective amendments) will be effective and will comply with all applicable laws; (ii) at the Relevant Time, one or more Prospectus Supplements will have been prepared and filed describing the Securities offered thereby and will comply with all applicable laws; (iii) at the time of execution, each of the parties to any Purchase Agreement other than the Company (a) will be duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization, (b) will have the requisite power and authority to execute, deliver and perform its obligations under each Purchase Agreement to which it is a party, and (c) will have duly authorized, executed and delivered each Purchase Agreement; and (iv) with respect to each of the parties to each Purchase Agreement (other than the Company), such Purchase Agreement to which it is a party will constitute its legally valid and binding agreement, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms.
In connection with the preparation of this opinion, we have examined such documents and considered such questions of law as we have deemed necessary or appropriate. We have assumed the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to originals of all documents submitted to us as copies thereof and the genuineness of all signatures.
VolitionRx Limited
September 24, 2021
Page Two
We are opining herein as to the effect on the subject transaction only of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, and we express no opinion with respect to the applicability thereto, or the effect thereon, of the laws of any other jurisdiction.
Subject to the foregoing and the other matters set forth herein, it is our opinion that as of the date hereof:
1. When the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and (i) any and all Prospectus Supplement(s) required by applicable laws have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) any applicable Purchase Agreement covering the offer and sale of the shares of Common Stock has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company; (iii) the issuance and delivery of the shares of Common Stock have been duly authorized in accordance with applicable laws, including, without limitation, by the adoption of resolutions of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) (or an authorized committee thereof); and (iv) payment of legal consideration for the shares of Common Stock, in the manner contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the related Prospectus Supplement(s), and any applicable Purchase Agreement, has been received by the Company, and assuming that (a) the terms of such shares of Common Stock, as issued and delivered, are materially consistent with the description thereof in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, and the related Prospectus Supplement(s); (b) at the time of the issuance of such shares of Common Stock, the Company has a sufficient number of authorized but unissued shares of Common Stock under the Company’s Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (as such may be amended from time to time, the “Certificate of Incorporation”); (c) such shares of Common Stock, as issued and delivered, comply with all requirements and restrictions, if any, applicable to the Company, whether imposed by any court, governmental agency or regulatory body having jurisdiction over the Company or otherwise; (d) such shares of Common Stock are issued and sold as contemplated in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the related Prospectus Supplement (s), any applicable Purchase Agreement, and such resolutions of the Board (or of an authorized committee thereof), such shares of Common Stock, including any shares of Common Stock duly issued upon the exercise of any Warrants that are exercisable for shares of Common Stock, will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.
2. When the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and (i) any and all Prospectus Supplement(s) required by applicable laws have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) the applicable Purchase Agreement covering the offer and sale of the Warrants has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company; (iii) the Warrants have been duly established in accordance with the terms of the applicable Purchase Agreement; (iv) the issuance and delivery of the Warrants have been duly authorized in accordance with applicable laws including, without limitation, by the adoption of resolutions of the Board (or an authorized committee thereof); (v) the Warrants have been duly executed, authenticated and/or countersigned (as applicable) in accordance with the applicable Purchase Agreement; and (vi) payment of legal consideration for the Warrants (if any) in the manner contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the related Prospectus Supplement(s), and any applicable Purchase Agreement, has been received by the Company, and assuming that (a) the terms of the Warrants, as executed and delivered, are materially consistent with the description thereof in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the related Prospectus Supplement(s); (b) the Warrants, as executed and delivered, do not violate any law applicable to the Company or result in a default under or breach of any agreement or instrument then binding upon the Company; (c) the Warrants as executed and delivered comply with all requirements and restrictions, if any, applicable to the Company, whether imposed by any court, governmental agency or regulatory body having jurisdiction over the Company or otherwise; and (d) the Warrants are issued and sold as contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the related Prospectus Supplement(s), any applicable Purchase Agreement and such resolutions of the Board (or of an authorized committee thereof), such Warrants will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.
VolitionRx Limited
September 24, 2021
Page Three
3. When the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and (i) any and all Prospectus Supplement(s) required by applicable laws have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) the applicable Purchase Agreement covering the offer and sale of the Units has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company; (iii) the Units have been duly established in accordance with the terms of the applicable Purchase Agreement; (iv) the issuance and delivery of the Units have been duly authorized in accordance with applicable laws including, without limitation, by the adoption of resolutions of the Board (or resolutions of an authorized committee thereof); (v) the Units have been duly executed, authenticated and/or countersigned (as applicable) in accordance with the Purchase Agreement relating to such Units; and (vi) payment of legal consideration for the Units, in the manner contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the related Prospectus Supplement(s), and any applicable Purchase Agreement, has been received by the Company, and assuming that (a) the terms of the Units, as executed and delivered, are materially consistent with the description thereof in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the related Prospectus Supplement(s); (b) the Units, as executed and delivered, do not violate any law applicable to the Company or result in a default under or breach of any agreement or instrument then binding upon the Company; (c) the Units as executed and delivered comply with all requirements and restrictions, if any, applicable to the Company, whether imposed by any court or governmental or regulatory body having jurisdiction over the Company or otherwise; and (d) the Units are issued and sold as contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the related Prospectus Supplement(s), any applicable Purchase Agreement and such resolutions of the Board (or of an authorized committee thereof), such Units will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.
The opinions set forth in Paragraphs 2 and 3 relating to the enforceability of the Warrants and Units, respectively, are subject to the following exceptions, limitations and qualifications: (i) the effect of bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, preference, fraudulent transfer, moratorium or other similar laws relating to or affecting the rights and remedies of creditors; (ii) the effect of general principles of equity, whether enforcement is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law (including the possible unavailability of specific performance or injunctive relief), concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing, and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought; (iii) the unenforceability under certain circumstances under law or court decisions of provisions providing for the indemnification of, or contribution to, a party with respect to a liability where such indemnification or contribution is contrary to public policy; and (iv) the unenforceability of any provision requiring the payment of attorneys’ fees, where such payment is contrary to law or public policy.
This opinion is for your benefit in connection with the Registration Statement, and may be relied upon by you and by persons entitled by law to rely upon it pursuant to the applicable provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws. We hereby consent to the use of this opinion as Exhibit 5.1 to the Registration Statement, and further consent to the use of our name under the caption “Legal Matters” in the Prospectus which is part of the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are within the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
This opinion is rendered as of the date hereof and based solely on our understanding of facts in existence as of such date after the examination described in this opinion. We assume no obligation to advise you of any fact, circumstance, event or change in the law or the facts that may hereafter be brought to our attention whether or not such occurrence would affect or modify the opinions expressed herein.
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| Very truly yours,
/s/ STRADLING YOCCA CARLSON & RAUTH, P.C.
STRADLING YOCCA CARLSON & RAUTH, P.C. |
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EXHIBIT 5.2
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| Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth 660 Newport Center Drive, Suite 1600 stradlinglaw.com |
September 24, 2021
VolitionRx Limited
13215 Bee Cave Parkway
Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B
Austin, Texas 78738
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| Re: | VolitionRx Limited Registration Statement on Form S-3 |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as counsel for VolitionRx Limited, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the registration statement on Form S-3 (the “Registration Statement”) to be filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on September 24, 2021 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and you have requested our opinion with respect to the matters set forth below.
You have provided us with a draft of the Registration Statement in the form in which it will be filed, which includes the prospectus (the “Prospectus”). The Prospectus provides that it may be supplemented by one or more supplements to the Prospectus (each, a “Prospectus Supplement”). We have rendered a separate opinion in connection with certain matters relating to the Registration Statement, which is being filed as Exhibit 5.1 thereto.
You have requested our supplemental opinion with respect to certain matters in connection with the proposed offer and sale by the Company of an aggregate of up to $25,000,000 of shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the “Common Stock”), pursuant to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and a Prospectus Supplement relating to the offer and sale of the Shares (the Prospectus and the Prospectus Supplement shall collectively be referred to as the “Sales Prospectus”). We understand that the Shares are proposed to be offered and sold by the Company through Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., as sales agents (each, an “Agent” and together, the “Agents”), pursuant to that certain Equity Distribution Agreement, dated as of September 24, 2021, by and between the Sales Agents and the Company (the “Sales Agreement”).
In our capacity as your counsel in connection with such registration, we are familiar with the proceedings taken and proposed to be taken by the Company in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement, the preparation and filing of the Sales Prospectus, the negotiation and execution of the Sales Agreement, and the authorization, issuance and sale of the Shares.
In connection with the preparation of this supplemental opinion, we have examined such documents and considered such questions of law as we have deemed necessary or appropriate. We have assumed the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to originals of all documents submitted to us as copies thereof and the genuineness of all signatures.
Based on the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Shares have been duly authorized and, when issued and sold in the manner described in the Registration Statement, the Sales Prospectus and the Sales Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.
We are opining herein as to the effect on the subject transaction only of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, and we express no opinion with respect to the applicability thereto, or the effect thereon, of the laws of any other jurisdiction.
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VolitionRx Limited
September 24, 2021
Page Two
This supplemental opinion is for your benefit in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares pursuant to the Registration Statement and may be relied upon by you and by persons entitled by law to rely upon it pursuant to the applicable provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws. We hereby consent to the use of this opinion as Exhibit 5.2 to the Registration Statement, and further consent to the use of our name under the caption “Legal Matters” in the Sales Prospectus which is part of the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are within the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
This opinion is rendered as of the date hereof and based solely on our understanding of facts in existence as of such date after the examination described in this supplemental opinion. We assume no obligation to advise you of any fact, circumstance, event or change in the law or the facts that may hereafter be brought to our attention whether or not such occurrence would affect or modify the opinions expressed herein.
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| Very truly yours,
/s/ STRADLING YOCCA CARLSON & RAUTH, P.C.
Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, P.C. |
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EXHIBIT 23.1
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
VolitionRx Limited
Austin, TX
/s/ Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC
Draper, UT
September 24, 2021
