UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 8-K

 

CURRENT REPORT

 

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

  

 

     Date of Report (Date of Earliest Event Reported):   August 2, 2012

 

 

 

Marina Biotech, Inc.
__________________________________________
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware 000-13789 11-2658569
_____________________
(State or other jurisdiction
_____________
(Commission
______________
(I.R.S. Employer
of incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)

 

3830 Monte Villa Parkway, Bothell,
Washington
  98021
_________________________________
(Address of principal executive offices)
  ___________
(Zip Code)

 

     Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:   425-908-3600

   

N/A
______________________________________________
Former name or former address, if changed since last report

 

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

 
 

 

Item 1.01 Entry Into a Material Definitive Agreement.

 

Entry into License Agreement

 

On August 2, 2012, Marina Biotech, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into a worldwide, non-exclusive License Agreement (the “License Agreement”) with Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Inc. (“Novartis”), a global leader in the development of human therapeutics, for the Company’s conformationally restricted nucleotide technology for the development of both single and double-stranded oligonucleotide therapeutics. The Company received $1 million in a one-time upfront payment for the non-exclusive license.

 

The Company intends to submit a FOIA Confidential Treatment Request to the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Rule 24b-2 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, requesting that it be permitted to redact certain portions of the License Agreement. The omitted material will be included in the request for confidential treatment.

 

The foregoing summary is qualified in its entirety by reference to the License Agreement, a redacted copy of which will be attached as an exhibit to the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2012.

 

Repayment and Conversion of Secured Notes

 

On August 3, 2012, the Company entered into a Third Amendment (the “Third Amendment”) to that certain Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement (as amended from time to time, the “Note Purchase Agreement”) dated as of February 10, 2012 among the Purchasers identified on the signature pages thereto (the “Purchasers”), the Company, MDRNA Research, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“Research”), and Cequent Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“Cequent” and, together with the Company and Research, the “Companies”), and the 15% secured promissory notes that the Company issued to the Purchasers pursuant thereto (the “Notes”), whereby the Company and the Purchasers agreed that if the Company, at any time prior to December 31, 2012, effects any merger or consolidation of the Company whereby the holders of the issued and outstanding shares of the common stock, par value $0.006 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”), immediately prior to the consummation of such transaction hold less than fifty percent (50%) of the issued and outstanding shares of the voting securities of the surviving corporation immediately following the consummation of such transaction, the Companies will have fully satisfied their obligations to repay the entire unpaid principal balance under the Notes and all accrued and unpaid interest thereon through: (i) payment to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis) of all sums received from the sale of surplus equipment by the Companies (net of sales expenses), such amounts to be applied promptly following sale first to interest accrued on the Notes and not yet paid and then to principal outstanding thereon; and (ii) the issuance to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis) of an aggregate number of shares of Common Stock calculated by converting the then total outstanding principal and interest under the Notes at a value of $0.28 per share of Common Stock (which shall be adjusted for corporate events such as stock splits, certain mergers, and subsequent financings effected on or prior to June 30, 2014) (the “Conversion Price”).

 

In addition, and as further consideration for the Third Amendment, the Company agreed to issue to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis), promptly upon the execution of the Third Amendment, warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares of Common Stock (the “Warrants”). The Warrants will have an initial exercise price of $0.28 per share, which is subject to adjustment (including as a result of subsequent financings completed on or prior to June 30, 2014), will be exercisable for a period of five years beginning six months and one day following the issuance of the Warrants, and otherwise have substantially the same terms and conditions as the warrants that were issued to the Purchasers upon the closing of the Note Purchase Agreement. Furthermore, upon the execution of the Third Amendment, the per share exercise price of the warrants previously issued to the Purchasers pursuant to the Note Purchase Agreement (including the amendments thereto) on each of February 10, 2012, April 30, 2012 and May 31, 2012 (namely to purchase up to an aggregate of 4,605,077 shares of Common Stock) shall automatically, and without any further action by the Company or the Purchasers, be reduced to $0.28.

 
 

 

Immediately upon the issuance to the Purchasers of all of the consideration described in the Third Amendment, the Notes shall be deemed cancelled and of no further force and effect, and any obligations of the Companies to the Purchasers pursuant to the Notes shall be deemed satisfied in full.

 

In addition, the Companies agreed in the Third Amendment that at any time prior to the automatic conversion of the Notes as described in the Third Amendment, the Purchasers shall have the right, on notice to the Companies, to convert the Notes to an aggregate number of shares of Common Stock calculated by converting the then total outstanding principal and interest under the Notes by the Conversion Price in effect at such time.

 

Furthermore, pursuant to the Third Amendment, the Purchasers agreed to extend the maturity date of the Notes from June 15, 2012 to December 31, 2012.

 

The foregoing summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Third Amendment and the Warrants, a copy of each of which is attached as an exhibit to this Current Report on Form 8-K.

 

Item 3.02 Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities.

 

In connection with the Third Amendment described under the heading “Repayment and Conversion of Secured Notes” in Item 1.01 above, the Company may issue to the Purchasers such number of shares of Common Stock as is equal to (x) the then total outstanding principal and interest under the Notes divided by (y) the Conversion Price in effect at such time. In addition, the Company is issuing the Warrants described in Item 1.01 above to the Purchasers in connection with the execution of the Third Amendment. The Company is offering and selling the foregoing securities in reliance on the exemption from registration afforded by Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Rule 506 of Regulation D promulgated thereunder.

 

Item 5.01 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

 

Resignation of Directors

 

On August 8, 2012, Gregory Sessler submitted his resignation as a member of the Board of Directors of the Company, effective at the close of business on August 8, 2012.

 

Amendments to Employment Agreements

 

The Company entered into letter agreements, dated August 2, 2012, with each of J. Michael French, its President and Chief Executive Officer, Philip C. Ranker, its interim Chief Financial Officer and Secretary, and Richard T. Ho, M.D., Ph.D., its Executive Vice President – Research and Development, pursuant to which the Company and each of Messrs. French, Ranker and Ho agreed that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in: (i) that certain Employment Agreement, dated June 10, 2008, between the Company and Mr. French, (ii) that certain Employment Agreement, effective as of September 7, 2011, by and between the Company and Mr. Ranker, and (iii) that certain Employment Agreement, effective as of September 1, 2011, by and between the Company and Dr. Ho, each of Messrs. French, Ranker and Ho may engage in consulting and other similar work, not directly competitive with the Company, while employed by the Company.

 

The foregoing summary of the letter agreements that the Company has entered into with Messrs. French, Ranker and Ho does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the copies of such letter agreements, which are attached as exhibits to this Current Report on Form 8-K.

 

Item 8.01 Other Events.

 

On August 3, 2012, the Company issued a press release announcing that it had entered into the License Agreement with Novartis, a copy of which is attached to this Current Report on Form 8-K and incorporated herein by reference.

 
 

 

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d) Exhibits:

 

Exhibit No. Description
   
4.1 Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant.
   
10.1 Third Amendment to Securities Purchase Agreement.
   
10.2** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and J. Michael French.
   
10.3** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and Philip C. Ranker.
   
10.4** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and Richard T. Ho., M.D., Ph.D.
   
99.1 Press release of Marina Biotech, Inc. dated August 3, 2012.

__________

 

** Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

 
 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

         

  Marina Biotech, Inc.
     
August 8, 2012 By:       /s/ J. Michael French
  Name:            J. Michael French
  Title:           Chief Executive Officer

 

 
 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit No. Description
   
4.1 Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant.
   
10.1 Third Amendment to Securities Purchase Agreement.
   
10.2** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and J. Michael French.
   
10.3** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and Philip C. Ranker.
   
10.4** Letter Agreement, dated August 7, 2012, between the Company and Richard T. Ho., M.D., Ph.D.
   
99.1 Press release of Marina Biotech, Inc. dated August 3, 2012.

__________

 

** Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

 
 

COMMON STOCK PURCHASE WARRANT

MARINA BIOTECH, INC.

 

Warrant Shares: __________   Initial Exercise Date: February 4, 2013
    Issue Date:  August 3, 2012

 

THIS COMMON STOCK PURCHASE WARRANT (the “ Warrant ”) certifies that, for value received, _____________________ (the “ Holder ”) is entitled, upon the terms and subject to the limitations on exercise and the conditions hereinafter set forth, at any time on or after the Initial Exercise Date as set forth above (the “ Initial Exercise Date ”) and on or prior to the close of business on February 4, 2018 (the “ Termination Date ”) but not thereafter, to subscribe for and purchase from Marina Biotech, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Company ”), up to _______________ shares (the “ Warrant Shares ”) of Common Stock. The purchase price of one share of Common Stock under this Warrant shall be equal to the Exercise Price, as defined in Section 2(b).

 

Section 1 .       Definitions . Capitalized terms used and not otherwise defined herein shall have the meanings set forth in that certain Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement dated as of February 10, 2012 among the Company and the purchasers signatory thereto (as amended from time to time, the “ Purchase Agreement ”).

 

Section 2 .       Exercise .

 

     a) Exercise of Warrant . Exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant may be made, in whole or in part, at any time or times on or after the Initial Exercise Date and on or before the Termination Date by delivery to the Company (or such other office or agency of the Company as it may designate by notice in writing to the registered Holder at the address of the Holder appearing on the books of the Company) and to Company Counsel of a duly executed facsimile copy of the Notice of Exercise Form annexed hereto; and, within 3 Trading Days of the date said Notice of Exercise is delivered to the Company, the Company shall have received payment of the aggregate Exercise Price of the shares thereby purchased by wire transfer or cashier’s check drawn on a United States bank. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Holder shall not be required to physically surrender this Warrant to the Company until the Holder has purchased all of the Warrant Shares available hereunder and the Warrant has been exercised in full, in which case, the Holder shall surrender this Warrant to the Company for cancellation within 3 Trading Days of the date the final Notice of Exercise is delivered to the Company. Partial exercises of this Warrant resulting in purchases of a portion of the total number of Warrant Shares available hereunder shall have the effect of lowering the outstanding number of Warrant Shares purchasable hereunder in an amount equal to the applicable number of Warrant Shares purchased. The Holder and the Company shall maintain records showing the number of Warrant Shares purchased and the date of such purchases. The Company shall deliver any objection to any Notice of Exercise Form within 1 Business Day of receipt of such notice. In the event of any dispute or discrepancy, the records of the Holder shall be controlling and determinative in the absence of manifest error. The Holder and any assignee, by acceptance of this Warrant, acknowledge and agree that, by reason of the provisions of this paragraph, following the purchase of a portion of the Warrant Shares hereunder, the number of Warrant Shares available for purchase hereunder at any given time may be less than the amount stated on the face hereof.

 

     b) Exercise Price . The exercise price per share of the Common Stock under this Warrant shall be $0.28, subject to adjustment hereunder (the “ Exercise Price ”).

 
 

 

     c) Cashless Exercise . If at any time during the term of this Warrant there is no effective Registration Statement registering, or no current prospectus available for, the issuance or resale of the Warrant Shares to or by the Holder, then this Warrant may also be exercised at such time by means of a “cashless exercise” in which the Holder shall be entitled to receive a certificate for the number of Warrant Shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing [(A-B) (X)] by (A), where:

 

             
    (A)   =   the VWAP on the Trading Day immediately preceding the date of such election;
             
    (B)   =   the Exercise Price of this Warrant, as adjusted; and
             
    (X)   =  

the number of Warrant Shares issuable upon exercise of this Warrant in accordance with the terms of this Warrant by means of a cash exercise rather than a cashless exercise.

     

Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, on the Termination Date, this Warrant shall be automatically exercised via cashless exercise pursuant to this Section 2(c).

 

d) Holder’s Restrictions . The Company shall not effect any exercise of this Warrant, and a Holder shall not have the right to exercise any portion of this Warrant, pursuant to Section 2 or otherwise, to the extent that after giving effect to such issuance after exercise as set forth on the applicable Notice of Exercise, the Holder (together with the Holder’s Affiliates), and any other person or entity acting as a group together with the Holder or any of the Holder’s Affiliates), would beneficially own in excess of the Beneficial Ownership Limitation (as defined below). For purposes of the foregoing sentence, the number of shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by the Holder and its Affiliates shall include the number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of this Warrant with respect to which such determination is being made, but shall exclude the number of shares of Common Stock which would be issuable upon (A) exercise of the remaining, nonexercised portion of this Warrant beneficially owned by the Holder or any of its Affiliates and (B) exercise or conversion of the unexercised or nonconverted portion of any other securities of the Company (including, without limitation, any Common Stock Equivalents) subject to a limitation on conversion or exercise analogous to the limitation contained herein beneficially owned by the Holder or any of its affiliates. Except as set forth in the preceding sentence, for purposes of this Section 2(d), beneficial ownership shall be calculated in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, it being acknowledged by the Holder that the Company is not representing to the Holder that such calculation is in compliance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the Holder is solely responsible for any schedules required to be filed in accordance therewith. To the extent that the limitation contained in this Section 2(d) applies, the determination of whether this Warrant is exercisable (in relation to other securities owned by the Holder together with any Affiliates) and of which portion of this Warrant is exercisable shall be in the sole discretion of the Holder, and the submission of a Notice of Exercise shall be deemed to be the Holder’s determination of whether this Warrant is exercisable (in relation to other securities owned by the Holder together with any Affiliates) and of which portion of this Warrant is exercisable, in each case subject to the Beneficial Ownership Limitation, and the Company shall have no obligation to verify or confirm the accuracy of such determination. In addition, a determination as to any group status as contemplated above shall be determined in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. For purposes of this Section 2(d), in determining the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock, a Holder may rely on the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock as reflected in (A) the Company’s most recent periodic or annual report, as the case may be, (B) a more recent public announcement by the Company or (C) any other notice by the Company or the Transfer Agent setting forth the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding. Upon the written or oral request of a Holder, the Company shall within two Trading Days confirm orally and in writing to the Holder the number of shares of Common Stock then outstanding. In any case, the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock shall be determined after giving effect to the conversion or exercise of securities of the Company, including this Warrant, by the Holder or its Affiliates since the date as of which such number of outstanding shares of Common Stock was reported. The “ Beneficial Ownership Limitation ” shall be 4.99% of the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of this Warrant. The Holder, upon not less than 61 days’ prior notice to the Company, may increase or decrease the Beneficial Ownership Limitation provisions of this Section 2(d), provided that the Beneficial Ownership Limitation in no event exceeds 9.99% of the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of Common Stock upon exercise of this Warrant held by the Holder and the provisions of this Section 2(d) shall continue to apply. Any such increase or decrease will not be effective until the 61st day after such notice is delivered to the Company. The provisions of this paragraph shall be construed and implemented in a manner otherwise than in strict conformity with the terms of this Section 2(d) to correct this paragraph (or any portion hereof) which may be defective or inconsistent with the intended Beneficial Ownership Limitation herein contained or to make changes or supplements necessary or desirable to properly give effect to such limitation. The limitations contained in this paragraph shall apply to a successor holder of this Warrant.

 
 

 

e) Mechanics of Exercise .

 

i. Delivery of Certificates Upon Exercise . Certificates for shares purchased hereunder shall be transmitted by the Transfer Agent to the Holder by crediting the account of the Holder’s prime broker with the Depository Trust Company through its Deposit Withdrawal Agent Commission (“ DWAC ”) system if the Company is then a participant in such system and either there is an effective Registration Statement permitting the resale of the Warrant Shares by the Holder or this Warrant is being exercised via cashless exercise, and otherwise by physical delivery to the address specified by the Holder in the Notice of Exercise within 3 Trading Days from the delivery to the Company of the Notice of Exercise Form, surrender of this Warrant (if required) and payment of the aggregate Exercise Price as set forth above (the “ Warrant Share Delivery Date ”). This Warrant shall be deemed to have been exercised on the date the Exercise Price is received by the Company. The Warrant Shares shall be deemed to have been issued, and Holder or any other person so designated to be named therein shall be deemed to have become a holder of record of such shares for all purposes, as of the date the Warrant has been exercised by payment to the Company of the Exercise Price (or by cashless exercise, if permitted) and all taxes required to be paid by the Holder, if any, pursuant to Section 2(e)(vi) prior to the issuance of such shares, have been paid. If the Company fails for any reason to deliver to the Holder certificates evidencing the Warrant Shares subject to a Notice of Exercise by the Warrant Share Delivery Date, the Company shall pay to the Holder, in cash, as liquidated damages and not as a penalty, for each $1,000 of Warrant Shares subject to such exercise (based on the VWAP of the Common Stock on the date of the applicable Notice of Exercise), $10 per Trading Day (increasing to $20 per Trading Day on the fifth Trading Day after such liquidated damages begin to accrue) for each Trading Day after such Warrant Share Delivery Date until such certificates are delivered.

 

ii. Delivery of New Warrants Upon Exercise . If this Warrant shall have been exercised in part, the Company shall, at the request of a Holder and upon surrender of this Warrant certificate, at the time of delivery of the certificate or certificates representing Warrant Shares, deliver to Holder a new Warrant evidencing the rights of Holder to purchase the unpurchased Warrant Shares called for by this Warrant, which new Warrant shall in all other respects be identical with this Warrant.

 

iii. Rescission Rights . If the Company fails to cause the Transfer Agent to transmit to the Holder a certificate or the certificates representing the Warrant Shares pursuant to Section 2(e)(i) by the Warrant Share Delivery Date, then the Holder will have the right to rescind such exercise.

 
 

 

iv. Compensation for Buy-In on Failure to Timely Deliver Certificates Upon Exercise . In addition to any other rights available to the Holder, if the Company fails to cause the Transfer Agent to transmit to the Holder a certificate or the certificates representing the Warrant Shares pursuant to an exercise on or before the Warrant Share Delivery Date, and if after such date the Holder is required by its broker to purchase (in an open market transaction or otherwise) or the Holder’s brokerage firm otherwise purchases, shares of Common Stock to deliver in satisfaction of a sale by the Holder of the Warrant Shares which the Holder anticipated receiving upon such exercise (a “ Buy-In ”), then the Company shall (A) pay in cash to the Holder the amount by which (x) the Holder’s total purchase price (including brokerage commissions, if any) for the shares of Common Stock so purchased exceeds (y) the amount obtained by multiplying (1) the number of Warrant Shares that the Company was required to deliver to the Holder in connection with the exercise at issue times (2) the price at which the sell order giving rise to such purchase obligation was executed, and (B) at the option of the Holder, either reinstate the portion of the Warrant and equivalent number of Warrant Shares for which such exercise was not honored or deliver to the Holder the number of shares of Common Stock that would have been issued had the Company timely complied with its exercise and delivery obligations hereunder. For example, if the Holder purchases Common Stock having a total purchase price of $11,000 to cover a Buy-In with respect to an attempted exercise of shares of Common Stock with an aggregate sale price giving rise to such purchase obligation of $10,000, under clause (A) of the immediately preceding sentence the Company shall be required to pay the Holder $1,000. The Holder shall provide the Company written notice indicating the amounts payable to the Holder in respect of the Buy-In and, upon request of the Company, evidence of the amount of such loss. Nothing herein shall limit a Holder’s right to pursue any other remedies available to it hereunder, at law or in equity including, without limitation, a decree of specific performance and/or injunctive relief with respect to the Company’s failure to timely deliver certificates representing shares of Common Stock upon exercise of the Warrant as required pursuant to the terms hereof.

 

v. No Fractional Shares or Scrip . No fractional shares or scrip representing fractional shares shall be issued upon the exercise of this Warrant. As to any fraction of a share which Holder would otherwise be entitled to purchase upon such exercise, the Company shall, at its election, either pay a cash adjustment in respect of such final fraction in an amount equal to such fraction multiplied by the Exercise Price or round up to the next whole share.

 

vi. Charges, Taxes and Expenses . Issuance of certificates for Warrant Shares shall be made without charge to the Holder for any issue or transfer tax or other incidental expense in respect of the issuance of such certificate, all of which taxes and expenses shall be paid by the Company, and such certificates shall be issued in the name of the Holder or in such name or names as may be directed by the Holder; provided , however , that in the event certificates for Warrant Shares are to be issued in a name other than the name of the Holder, this Warrant when surrendered for exercise shall be accompanied by the Assignment Form attached hereto duly executed by the Holder and the Company may require, as a condition thereto, the payment of a sum sufficient to reimburse it for any transfer tax incidental thereto.

 

vii. Closing of Books . The Company will not close its stockholder books or records in any manner which prevents the timely exercise of this Warrant, pursuant to the terms hereof.

 

Section 3 .       Certain Adjustments .

 

a) Stock Dividends and Splits . If the Company, at any time while this Warrant is outstanding: (i) pays a stock dividend or otherwise makes a distribution or distributions on shares of its Common Stock or any other equity or equity equivalent securities payable in shares of Common Stock (which, for avoidance of doubt, shall not include any shares of Common Stock issued by the Company upon exercise of this Warrant), (ii) subdivides outstanding shares of Common Stock into a larger number of shares, (iii) combines (including by way of reverse stock split) outstanding shares of Common Stock into a smaller number of shares or (iv) issues by reclassification of shares of the Common Stock any shares of capital stock of the Company, then in each case the Exercise Price shall be multiplied by a fraction of which the numerator shall be the number of shares of Common Stock (excluding treasury shares, if any) outstanding immediately before such event and of which the denominator shall be the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding immediately after such event and the number of shares issuable upon exercise of this Warrant shall be proportionately adjusted such that the aggregate Exercise Price of this Warrant shall remain unchanged. Any adjustment made pursuant to this Section 3(a) shall become effective immediately after the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to receive such dividend or distribution and shall become effective immediately after the effective date in the case of a subdivision, combination or re-classification.

 
 

 

b) Subsequent Equity Sales . If the Company or any Subsidiary thereof, as applicable, at any time on or prior to June 30, 2014, shall sell or grant any option to purchase, or sell or grant any right to reprice, or otherwise dispose of or issue or agree to reprice (or announce any offer, sale, grant or any option to purchase or other disposition) any Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents entitling any Person to acquire shares of Common Stock, at an effective price per share less than the then Exercise Price (such lower price, the “Base Share Price” and such issuances collectively, a “ Dilutive Issuance ”) (it being understood for purposes of the foregoing that if the holder of the Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents so issued shall at any time, whether by operation of purchase price adjustments, reset provisions, floating conversion, exercise or exchange prices or otherwise, or due to warrants, options or rights per share which are issued in connection with such issuance, be entitled to receive shares of Common Stock at an effective price per share which is less than the Exercise Price, such issuance shall be deemed to have occurred for less than the Exercise Price on such date of the Dilutive Issuance), then the Exercise Price shall be reduced and only reduced to equal the Base Share Price. Such adjustment shall be made whenever such Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents are issued or deemed issued. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no adjustments shall be made, paid or issued under this Section 3(b) in respect of an Exempt Issuance. The Company shall notify the Holder in writing, no later than the Trading Day following the issuance or deemed issuance of any Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents subject to this Section 3(b), indicating therein the applicable issuance price, or applicable reset price, exchange price, conversion price and other pricing terms (such notice the “Dilutive Issuance Notice”). For purposes of clarification, whether or not the Company provides a Dilutive Issuance Notice pursuant to this Section 3(b), upon the occurrence of any Dilutive Issuance, after the date of such Dilutive Issuance the Holder is entitled to receive Warrant Shares at the Base Share Price regardless of whether the Holder accurately refers to the Base Share Price in the Notice of Exercise.

 

c) Subsequent Rights Offerings . If the Company, at any time while the Warrant is outstanding, shall issue rights, options or warrants to all holders of Common Stock (and not to Holders) entitling them to subscribe for or purchase shares of Common Stock at a price per share less than the VWAP at the record date mentioned below, then, the Exercise Price shall be multiplied by a fraction, of which the denominator shall be the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding on the date of issuance of such rights or warrants plus the number of additional shares of Common Stock offered for subscription or purchase, and of which the numerator shall be the number of shares of the Common Stock outstanding on the date of issuance of such rights or warrants plus the number of shares which the aggregate offering price of the total number of shares so offered (assuming receipt by the Company in full of all consideration payable upon exercise of such rights, options or warrants) would purchase at such VWAP. Such adjustment shall be made whenever such rights or warrants are issued, and shall become effective immediately after the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to receive such rights, options or warrants.

 

d) Pro Rata Distributions . If the Company, at any time while this Warrant is outstanding, shall distribute to all holders of Common Stock (and not to Holders of the Warrants) evidences of its indebtedness or assets (including cash and cash dividends) or rights or warrants to subscribe for or purchase any security other than the Common Stock (which shall be subject to Section 3(b)), then in each such case the Exercise Price shall be adjusted by multiplying the Exercise Price in effect immediately prior to the record date fixed for determination of stockholders entitled to receive such distribution by a fraction of which the denominator shall be the VWAP determined as of the record date mentioned above, and of which the numerator shall be such VWAP on such record date less the then per share fair market value at such record date of the portion of such assets or evidence of indebtedness so distributed applicable to one outstanding share of the Common Stock as determined by the Board of Directors in good faith. In either case the adjustments shall be described in a statement provided to the Holder of the portion of assets or evidences of indebtedness so distributed or such subscription rights applicable to one share of Common Stock. Such adjustment shall be made whenever any such distribution is made and shall become effective immediately after the record date mentioned above.

 
 

 

e) Fundamental Transaction . If, at any time while this Warrant is outstanding, (i) the Company effects any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another Person, (ii) the Company effects any sale of all or substantially all of its assets in one or a series of related transactions, (iii) any tender offer or exchange offer (whether by the Company or another Person) is completed pursuant to which holders of Common Stock are permitted to tender or exchange their shares for other securities, cash or property or (iv) the Company effects any reclassification of the Common Stock or any compulsory share exchange pursuant to which the Common Stock is effectively converted into or exchanged for other securities, cash or property (each “ Fundamental Transaction ”), then, upon any subsequent exercise of this Warrant, the Holder shall have the right to receive, for each Warrant Share that would have been issuable upon such exercise immediately prior to the occurrence of such Fundamental Transaction, the number of shares of Common Stock of the successor or acquiring corporation or of the Company, if it is the surviving corporation, and any additional consideration (the “ Alternate Consideration ”) receivable as a result of such merger, consolidation or disposition of assets by a holder of the number of shares of Common Stock for which this Warrant is exercisable immediately prior to such event. For purposes of any such exercise, the determination of the Exercise Price shall be appropriately adjusted to apply to such Alternate Consideration based on the amount of Alternate Consideration issuable in respect of one share of Common Stock in such Fundamental Transaction, and the Company shall apportion the Exercise Price among the Alternate Consideration in a reasonable manner reflecting the relative value of any different components of the Alternate Consideration. If holders of Common Stock are given any choice as to the securities, cash or property to be received in a Fundamental Transaction, then the Holder shall be given the same choice as to the Alternate Consideration it receives upon any exercise of this Warrant following such Fundamental Transaction. To the extent necessary to effectuate the foregoing provisions, any successor to the Company or surviving entity in such Fundamental Transaction shall issue to the Holder a new warrant consistent with the foregoing provisions and evidencing the Holder’s right to exercise such warrant into Alternate Consideration. The terms of any agreement pursuant to which a Fundamental Transaction is effected shall include terms requiring any such successor or surviving entity to comply with the provisions of this Section 3(e) and insuring that this Warrant (or any such replacement security) will be similarly adjusted upon any subsequent transaction analogous to a Fundamental Transaction. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, in the event of a Fundamental Transaction that is (1) an all cash transaction, (2) a “Rule 13e-3 transaction” as defined in Rule 13e-3 under the Exchange Act or (3) a Fundamental Transaction in which the surviving corporation (if not the Company) is a person or entity not traded on a national securities exchange, the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the Nasdaq Global Market, the Nasdaq Capital Market, or the OTCQX or OTCQB tiers of the OTC Markets, the Company or any successor entity shall pay at the Holder’s option, exercisable at any time concurrently with or within 30 days after the consummation of the Fundamental Transaction, an amount of cash equal to the value of this Warrant as determined in accordance with the Black Scholes Option Pricing Model obtained from the “OV” function on Bloomberg L.P. using (A) a price per share of Common Stock equal to the VWAP of the Common Stock for the Trading Day immediately preceding the date of consummation of the applicable Fundamental Transaction, (B) a risk-free interest rate corresponding to the U.S. Treasury rate for a 30 day period immediately prior to the consummation of the applicable Fundamental Transaction, (C) an expected volatility equal to the 100 day volatility obtained from the “HVT” function on Bloomberg L.P. determined as of the Trading Day immediately following the public announcement of the applicable Fundamental Transaction and (D) a remaining option time equal to the time between the date of the public announcement of such transaction and the Termination Date.

 

f) Calculations . All calculations under this Section 3 shall be made to the nearest cent or the nearest 1/100th of a share, as the case may be. For purposes of this Section 3, the number of shares of Common Stock deemed to be issued and outstanding as of a given date shall be the sum of the number of shares of Common Stock (excluding treasury shares, if any) issued and outstanding.

 

g) Notice to Holder .

 

i. Adjustment to Exercise Price . Whenever the Exercise Price is adjusted pursuant to any provision of this Section 3, the Company shall promptly mail to the Holder a notice setting forth the Exercise Price after such adjustment and setting forth a brief statement of the facts requiring such adjustment.

 
 

 

ii. Notice to Allow Exercise by Holder . If (A) the Company shall declare a dividend (or any other distribution in whatever form) on the Common Stock, (B) the Company shall declare a special nonrecurring cash dividend on or a redemption of the Common Stock, (C) the Company shall authorize the granting to all holders of the Common Stock rights or warrants to subscribe for or purchase any shares of capital stock of any class or of any rights, (D) the approval of any stockholders of the Company shall be required in connection with any reclassification of the Common Stock, any consolidation or merger to which the Company is a party, any sale or transfer of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, of any compulsory share exchange whereby the Common Stock is converted into other securities, cash or property or (E) the Company shall authorize the voluntary or involuntary dissolution, liquidation or winding up of the affairs of the Company, then, in each case, the Company shall cause to be mailed to the Holder at its last address as it shall appear upon the Warrant Register of the Company, at least 20 calendar days prior to the applicable record or effective date hereinafter specified, a notice stating (x) the date on which a record is to be taken for the purpose of such dividend, distribution, redemption, rights or warrants, or if a record is not to be taken, the date as of which the holders of the Common Stock of record to be entitled to such dividend, distributions, redemption, rights or warrants are to be determined or (y) the date on which such reclassification, consolidation, merger, sale, transfer or share exchange is expected to become effective or close, and the date as of which it is expected that holders of the Common Stock of record shall be entitled to exchange their shares of the Common Stock for securities, cash or other property deliverable upon such reclassification, consolidation, merger, sale, transfer or share exchange; provided that the failure to mail such notice or any defect therein or in the mailing thereof shall not affect the validity of the corporate action required to be specified in such notice. To the extent that any notice provided hereunder constitutes, or contains, material, non-public information regarding the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, the Company shall simultaneously file such notice with the Commission pursuant to a Current Report on Form 8-K. The Holder is entitled to exercise this Warrant during the period commencing on the date of such notice to the effective date of the event triggering such notice.

 

Section 4 .       Transfer of Warrant .

 

a) Transferability . This Warrant and all rights hereunder are transferable, in whole or in part, upon surrender of this Warrant at the principal office of the Company or its designated agent, together with a written assignment of this Warrant substantially in the form attached hereto duly executed by the Holder or its agent or attorney and funds sufficient to pay any transfer taxes payable upon the making of such transfer. Upon such surrender and, if required, such payment, the Company shall execute and deliver a new Warrant or Warrants in the name of the assignee or assignees, as applicable, and in the denomination or denominations specified in such instrument of assignment, and shall issue to the assignor a new Warrant evidencing the portion of this Warrant not so assigned, and this Warrant shall promptly be cancelled. The Warrant, if properly assigned, may be exercised by a new holder for the purchase of Warrant Shares without having a new Warrant issued.

 

b) New Warrants . This Warrant may be divided or combined with other Warrants upon presentation hereof at the aforesaid office of the Company, together with a written notice specifying the names and denominations in which new Warrants are to be issued, signed by the Holder or its agent or attorney. Subject to compliance with Section 4(a), as to any transfer which may be involved in such division or combination, the Company shall execute and deliver a new Warrant or Warrants in exchange for the Warrant or Warrants to be divided or combined in accordance with such notice. All Warrants issued on transfers or exchanges shall be dated the Initial Exercise Date and shall be identical with this Warrant except as to the number of Warrant Shares issuable pursuant thereto.

 

c) Warrant Register . The Company shall register this Warrant, upon records to be maintained by the Company for that purpose (the “ Warrant Register ”), in the name of the record Holder hereof from time to time. The Company may deem and treat the registered Holder of this Warrant as the absolute owner hereof for the purpose of any exercise hereof or any distribution to the Holder, and for all other purposes, absent actual notice to the contrary.

 
 

 

Section 5 .       Miscellaneous .

 

a) No Rights as Stockholder Until Exercise . This Warrant does not entitle the Holder to any voting rights or other rights as a stockholder of the Company prior to the exercise hereof as set forth in Section 2(e)(i).

 

b) Loss, Theft, Destruction or Mutilation of Warrant . The Company covenants that upon receipt by the Company of evidence reasonably satisfactory to it of the loss, theft, destruction or mutilation of this Warrant or any stock certificate relating to the Warrant Shares, and in case of loss, theft or destruction, of indemnity or security reasonably satisfactory to it (which, in the case of the Warrant, shall not include the posting of any bond), and upon surrender and cancellation of such Warrant or stock certificate, if mutilated, the Company will make and deliver a new Warrant or stock certificate of like tenor and dated as of such cancellation, in lieu of such Warrant or stock certificate.

 

c) Saturdays, Sundays, Holidays, etc . If the last or appointed day for the taking of any action or the expiration of any right required or granted herein shall not be a Business Day, then, such action may be taken or such right may be exercised on the next succeeding Business Day.

 

d) Authorized Shares . The Company covenants that, during the period the Warrant is outstanding, it will reserve from its authorized and unissued Common Stock a sufficient number of shares to provide for the issuance of the Warrant Shares upon the exercise of any purchase rights under this Warrant. The Company further covenants that its issuance of this Warrant shall constitute full authority to its officers who are charged with the duty of executing stock certificates to execute and issue the necessary certificates for the Warrant Shares upon the exercise of the purchase rights under this Warrant. The Company will take all such reasonable action as may be necessary to assure that such Warrant Shares may be issued as provided herein without violation of any applicable law or regulation, or of any requirements of the Trading Market upon which the Common Stock may be listed. The Company covenants that all Warrant Shares which may be issued upon the exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant will, upon exercise of the purchase rights represented by this Warrant, be duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable and free from all taxes, liens and charges created by the Company in respect of the issue thereof (other than taxes in respect of any transfer occurring contemporaneously with such issue).

 

Except and to the extent as waived or consented to by the Holder, the Company shall not by any action, including, without limitation, amending its certificate of incorporation or through any reorganization, transfer of assets, consolidation, merger, dissolution, issue or sale of securities or any other voluntary action, avoid or seek to avoid the observance or performance of any of the terms of this Warrant, but will at all times in good faith assist in the carrying out of all such terms and in the taking of all such actions as may be necessary or appropriate to protect the rights of Holder as set forth in this Warrant against impairment. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Company will (i) not increase the par value of any Warrant Shares above the amount payable therefor upon such exercise immediately prior to such increase in par value, (ii) take all such action as may be necessary or appropriate in order that the Company may validly and legally issue fully paid and nonassessable Warrant Shares upon the exercise of this Warrant and (iii) use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain all such authorizations, exemptions or consents from any public regulatory body having jurisdiction thereof, as may be, necessary to enable the Company to perform its obligations under this Warrant.

 

Before taking any action which would result in an adjustment in the number of Warrant Shares for which this Warrant is exercisable or in the Exercise Price, the Company shall obtain all such authorizations or exemptions thereof, or consents thereto, as may be necessary from any public regulatory body or bodies having jurisdiction thereof.

 

e) Jurisdiction . All questions concerning the construction, validity, enforcement and interpretation of this Warrant shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of the Purchase Agreement.

 

f) Restrictions . The Holder acknowledges that the Warrant Shares acquired upon the exercise of this Warrant, if not issued to the Holder pursuant to an effective registration statement, and the Holder does not exercise via “cashless exercise,” may have restrictions upon resale imposed by state and federal securities laws.

 
 

 

g) Nonwaiver and Expenses . No course of dealing or any delay or failure to exercise any right hereunder on the part of Holder shall operate as a waiver of such right or otherwise prejudice Holder’s rights, powers or remedies, notwithstanding the fact that all rights hereunder terminate on the Termination Date. If the Company willfully and knowingly fails to comply with any provision of this Warrant, which results in any material damages to the Holder, the Company shall pay to Holder such amounts as shall be sufficient to cover any costs and expenses including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys’ fees, including those of appellate proceedings, incurred by Holder in collecting any amounts due pursuant hereto or in otherwise enforcing any of its rights, powers or remedies hereunder.

 

h) Notices . Any notice, request or other document required or permitted to be given or delivered to the Holder by the Company shall be delivered in accordance with the notice provisions of the Purchase Agreement.

 

i) Limitation of Liability . No provision hereof, in the absence of any affirmative action by Holder to exercise this Warrant to purchase Warrant Shares, and no enumeration herein of the rights or privileges of Holder, shall give rise to any liability of Holder for the purchase price of any Common Stock or as a stockholder of the Company, whether such liability is asserted by the Company or by creditors of the Company.

 

j) Remedies . The Holder, in addition to being entitled to exercise all rights granted by law, including recovery of damages, will be entitled to specific performance of its rights under this Warrant. The Company agrees that monetary damages would not be adequate compensation for any loss incurred by reason of a breach by it of the provisions of this Warrant and hereby agrees to waive and not to assert the defense in any action for specific performance that a remedy at law would be adequate.

 

k) Successors and Assigns . Subject to applicable securities laws, this Warrant and the rights and obligations evidenced hereby shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the successors of the Company and the successors and permitted assigns of Holder. The provisions of this Warrant are intended to be for the benefit of all Holders from time to time of this Warrant and shall be enforceable by the Holder or holder of Warrant Shares.

 

l) Amendment . This Warrant may be modified or amended or the provisions hereof waived with the written consent of the Company and Holders holding Warrants at least equal to 67% of the Warrant Shares issuable upon exercise of all then outstanding Warrants.

 

m) Severability . Wherever possible, each provision of this Warrant shall be interpreted in such manner as to be effective and valid under applicable law, but if any provision of this Warrant shall be prohibited by or invalid under applicable law, such provision shall be ineffective to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity, without invalidating the remainder of such provisions or the remaining provisions of this Warrant.

 

n) Headings . The headings used in this Warrant are for the convenience of reference only and shall not, for any purpose, be deemed a part of this Warrant.

 

********************

 

(Signature Pages Follow)

 
 

 

          IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this Warrant to be executed by its officer thereunto duly authorized as of the date first above indicated.

 

  MARINA BIOTECH, INC.
       
  By:    
       
    Name: J. Michael French
    Title: President and Chief Executive Officer

 

 
 

 

NOTICE OF EXERCISE

TO:      Marina Biotech, Inc.

 

     (1) The undersigned hereby elects to purchase                      Warrant Shares of the Company pursuant to the terms of the attached Warrant (only if exercised in full), and tenders herewith payment of the exercise price in full, together with all applicable transfer taxes, if any.

 

     (2) Payment shall take the form of (check applicable box):

 

o in lawful money of the United States; or

 

o [if permitted] the cancellation of such number of Warrant Shares as is necessary, in accordance with the formula set forth in subsection 2(c), to exercise this Warrant with respect to the maximum number of Warrant Shares purchasable pursuant to the cashless exercise procedure set forth in subsection 2(c).

 

     (3) Please issue a certificate or certificates representing said Warrant Shares in the name of the undersigned or in such other name as is specified below:

__

 

The Warrant Shares shall be delivered to the following DWAC Account Number or by physical delivery of a certificate to:

__

 

 

 

 

 

     (4) Accredited Investor. The undersigned is an “accredited investor” as defined in Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

 

[SIGNATURE OF HOLDER]

 

Name of Investing Entity:            

                       

 

Signature of Authorized Signatory of Investing Entity :        

               

 

Name of Authorized Signatory:            

                       

 

Title of Authorized Signatory:          

                   

  

Date:              

                           

 

 
 

 

ASSIGNMENT FORM

(To assign the foregoing warrant, execute
this form and supply required information.
Do not use this form to exercise the warrant.)

 

     FOR VALUE RECEIVED, [___] all of or [                      ] shares of the foregoing Warrant and all rights evidenced thereby are hereby assigned to

 

             whose address is

 

               

 

               

 

Dated:                      , ___

 

             
    Holder’s
Signature:
       
       
 
   
    Holder’s
Address:
       
       
 
   
             
       
 
   

 

Signature Guaranteed:        

 

NOTE: The signature to this Assignment Form must correspond with the name as it appears on the face of the Warrant, without alteration or enlargement or any change whatsoever, and must be guaranteed by a bank or trust company. Officers of corporations and those acting in a fiduciary or other representative capacity should file proper evidence of authority to assign the foregoing Warrant.

 

 
 

THIRD AMENDMENT TO

NOTE AND WARRANT PURCHASE AGREEMENT

and SECURED PROMISSORY NOTES

 

This Third Amendment (as amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Third Amendment ”) dated as of August 3, 2012, among Marina Biotech, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Company ”), MDRNA Research, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“ Research ”), and Cequent Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“ Cequent ” and, together with the Company and Research, the “ Companies ”), and each purchaser identified on the signature pages hereto (each, including its successors and assigns, a “ Purchaser ” and collectively the “ Purchasers ”), amends (i) that certain Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement (as amended from time to time, the “ Purchase Agreement ”), dated as of February 10, 2012, among the Companies and the Purchasers and (ii) the Secured Promissory Notes (the “ Notes ”) issued to the Purchasers pursuant thereto. Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the Purchase Agreement.

 

WHEREAS, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Third Amendment, the Companies and the Purchasers desire to amend the Purchase Agreement and the Notes as set forth herein;

 

NOW, THEREFORE, IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual covenants contained in this Third Amendment, and for other good and valuable consideration the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, the Companies and the Purchasers hereby agree as follows:

 

Section 1. Satisfaction and Cancellation of Notes . By executing below, the Companies and the Purchasers hereby acknowledge and agree that if the Company, prior to December 31, 2012, effects any merger or consolidation of the Company whereby the holders of the issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock immediately prior to the consummation of such transaction hold less than fifty percent (50%) of the issued and outstanding shares of the voting securities of the surviving corporation immediately following the consummation of such transaction, the Companies will have fully satisfied their obligations to repay the entire unpaid principal balance under the Notes and all accrued and unpaid interest thereon through: (i) payment to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis) of all sums received from the sale of surplus equipment by the Companies (net of sales expenses), such amounts to be applied promptly following sale first to interest accrued on the Notes and not yet paid and then to principal outstanding thereon; and (ii) the issuance to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis) of an aggregate number of shares of Common Stock calculated by converting the then total outstanding principal and interest under the Notes at a value of $.28 per share of Common Stock (the “ Conversion Price ”) ( provided such Conversion Price shall be adjusted for corporate events such as stock splits, and for subsequent financings as set forth in this Third Amendment, and provided further that if the effective price received by common shareholders of the Companies upon a merger or consolidation is less than $0.38 per share, then the Conversion Price solely with respect to principal and interest converted under the Notes will be adjusted to 75% of that effective price) (provided that this clause (ii) shall be deemed satisfied if the Purchasers have otherwise converted the Notes to Common Stock as provided in this Third Amendment). In addition, and as further consideration for this Third Amendment, the Company shall issue to the Purchasers (on a pro rata basis), promptly upon the execution of this Third Amendment, warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares of Common Stock (the “ Warrants ”). The Warrants will have an initial exercise price of $0.28 per share, which is subject to adjustment (including as a result of subsequent financings completed on or prior to June 30, 2014), will be exercisable for a period of five years beginning six months and one day following the issuance of the Warrants, and otherwise have substantially the same terms and conditions as the warrants that were issued to the Purchasers upon the closing of the Purchase Agreement. Furthermore, upon the execution of this Third Amendment, the per share exercise price of the warrants heretofore issued to the Purchasers pursuant to the Purchase Agreement (including the amendments thereto) on each of February 10, 2012, April 30, 2012 and May 31, 2012 (namely to purchase up to an aggregate of 4,605,077 shares of Common Stock) shall automatically, and without any further action by the Company or the Purchasers, be reduced to $0.28. Immediately upon the issuance to the Purchasers of the consideration described in this Section 1, the Notes shall be deemed cancelled and of no further force and effect, and any obligations of the Company to the Purchasers pursuant to the Notes shall be deemed satisfied in full.

1
 

 

If the Company, at any time on or prior to August 11, 2014, shall sell or grant any option to purchase, or sell or grant any right to reprice, or otherwise dispose of or issue or agree to reprice (or announce any offer, sale, grant or any option to purchase or other disposition) any Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents entitling any Person to acquire shares of Common Stock, at an effective price per share less than the then Conversion Price (such lower price, the “Base Share Price” and such issuances collectively, a “Dilutive Issuance”) (it being understood for purposes of the foregoing that if the holder of the Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents so issued shall at any time, whether by operation of purchase price adjustments, reset provisions, floating conversion, exercise or exchange prices or otherwise, or due to warrants, options or rights per share which are issued in connection with such issuance, be entitled to receive shares of Common Stock at an effective price per share which is less than the Conversion Price, such issuance shall be deemed to have occurred for less than the Conversion Price on such date of the Dilutive Issuance), then the Conversion Price shall be reduced and only reduced to equal the Base Share Price. Such adjustment shall be made whenever such Common Stock or Common Stock Equivalents are issued or deemed issued. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no adjustments shall be made, paid or issued under this Section 3(b) in respect of an Exempt Issuance.

 

The Companies agree that at any time the Purchasers shall have the right, on notice to the Companies, to convert the Notes to an aggregate number of shares of Common Stock calculated by converting the then total outstanding principal and interest under the Notes at a value equal to the Conversion Price in effect at such time. This right may be exercised at any time and may be exercised in lieu of accepting prepayment of the Notes.

2
 

 

Section 2. Amendment of Definitions . The following definitions contained in Section 1.1 of the Purchase Agreement are hereby amended as set forth below:

 

(a) The definition of “ Transaction Documents ” is hereby amended to add this “Third Amendment” as a Transaction Document.

 

(b) The definition of “ Warrants ” is hereby amended to include the Warrants that may be issued pursuant to this Third Amendment.

 

Section 3. Amendment of Maturity Date; Consent . (A) The parties hereto hereby agree that the Notes that were issued to the Purchasers on the Closing Date pursuant to the Purchase Agreement are hereby further amended by replacing the reference to “June 15, 2012” in clause (A) of the first paragraph thereof (as previously amended on each of April 30, 2012 and May 31, 2012 relating to the Maturity Date of the Notes) with a reference to “December 31, 2012”.

 

(B) The Purchasers consent to the use of the proceeds received from the Novartis license of certain technologies in the amount of one million dollars for general corporate purposes.

 

Section 4. Miscellaneous .

 

4.1 No Other Amendments . Except as otherwise expressly provided by this Third Amendment, all of the terms and conditions of each of the Transaction Documents are, and shall continue to be, in full force and effect and are hereby ratified and confirmed in all respects.

 

4.2 Headings . The headings herein are for convenience only, do not constitute a part of this Third Amendment and shall not be deemed to limit or affect any of the provisions hereof.

 

4.3 Execution . This Third Amendment may be executed in two or more counterparts, all of which when taken together shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each party and delivered to the other party, it being understood that both parties need not sign the same counterpart. In the event that any signature is delivered by facsimile transmission or by e-mail delivery of a “.pdf” format data file, such signature shall create a valid and binding obligation of the party executing (or on whose behalf such signature is executed) with the same force and effect as if such facsimile or “.pdf” signature page were an original thereof.

 

4.4 Severability . If any term, provision, covenant or restriction of this Third Amendment is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable, the remainder of the terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions set forth herein shall remain in full force and effect and shall in no way be affected, impaired or invalidated, and the parties hereto shall use their commercially reasonable efforts to find and employ an alternative means to achieve the same or substantially the same result as that contemplated by such term, provision, covenant or restriction. It is hereby stipulated and declared to be the intention of the parties that they would have executed the remaining terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions without including any of such that may be hereafter declared invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable.

3
 

 

4.5 Choice of Law . This Third Amendment shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York without regard to the principles of conflicts of laws thereof.

 

4.6 Effectiveness . This Third Amendment shall be effective upon the Companies execution and receipt of the same amendment executed by all of the undersigned.

 

[Remainder of Page Intentionally Left Blank; Signature Pages Follow]

4
 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Third Amendment to Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement and Secured Promissory Notes to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date first indicated above.

 

  MARINA BIOTECH, INC.
     
     
  By: /s/ J. Michael French
  Name: J. Michael French
  Title: President and Chief Executive Officer
     
     
  MDRNA RESEARCH, INC.
     
     
  By: /s/ J. Michael French
  Name: J. Michael French
  Title: President
     
     
  CEQUENT PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
     
     
  By: /s/ J. Michael French
  Name: J. Michael French
  Title: President

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank; signature pages for Purchasers follows]

5
 

 

[PURCHASER SIGNATURE PAGES TO THIRD AMENDMENT TO NOTE AND WARRANT PURCHASE AGREEMENT and SECURED PROMISSORY NOTES]

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have caused this Third Amendment to Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement and Secured Promissory Notes to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date first indicated above.

 

 

  GENESIS CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC
     
     
  By: /s/ Shawn Rhynes
  Name: Shawn Rhynes
  Title: Managing Director
     

 

6
 

 

[PURCHASER SIGNATURE PAGES TO THIRD AMENDMENT TO NOTE AND WARRANT PURCHASE AGREEMENT and SECURED PROMISSORY NOTES]

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned have caused this Third Amendment to Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement and Secured Promissory Notes to be duly executed by their respective authorized signatories as of the date first indicated above.

 

 

  PEAK CAPITAL ADVISORY LIMITED
     
     
  By: /s/ Feng Bai Ye
  Name: Feng Bai Ye
  Title: Managing Director

 

 

7
 

 

James M. Karis

Chairman of the Board

Marina Biotech, Inc.

 

 

 

August 2, 2012

 

 

J. Michael French

Marina Biotech, Inc.

President & CEO

3830 Monte Villa Parkway
Bothell, Washington 98021

jmfrench@marinabio.com

 

Re: Supplemental Work

 

Dear Michael:

 

You and Marina Biotech, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an Employment Agreement originally dated June 10, 2008 (as replaced, amended or modified from time to time, the “Agreement”). The Company, the Board, and myself as Chair are very appreciative of the work you have done and continue to do for the Company. The Company and its Board recognize the effect the financial state of the Company has had on its employees and management.

 

The Board therefore yesterday explicitly approved and ratified that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Agreement, you may engage in consulting and other similar work, not directly competitive with the Company, while employed by the Company. This supplemental work will not be deemed a breach of any duty or obligation to the Company, or any agreement with the Company, including without limitation the Agreement.

 

Please sign this letter below in confirmation and agreement.

 

  Very truly yours,
   
  /s/ James M. Karis
   
  James M. Karis
  Chairman of the Board

 

Confirmed and Agreed:  
   
/s/ J. Michael French  
J. Michael French  

 

 
 

 

 

August 2, 2012

 

 

 

Philip C. Ranker

Marina Biotech, Inc.

Interim Chief Financial Officer

E-Mail: pranker@marinabio.com

Re: Supplemental Work

 

Dear Phil:

 

You and Marina Biotech, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an Employment Agreement effective September 7, 2011 (as amended or modified from time to time, the “Agreement”). The Company, the Board, and myself are very appreciative of the work you have done and continue to do for the Company. The Company and its Board recognize the effect the financial state of the Company has had on its employees and management.

 

The Board therefore yesterday explicitly approved and ratified that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Agreement, you may engage in consulting and other similar work, not directly competitive with the Company, while employed by the Company. This supplemental work will not be deemed a breach of any duty or obligation to the Company, or any agreement with the Company, including without limitation the Agreement.

 

Please sign this letter below in confirmation and agreement.

 

  Very truly yours,
   
  /s/ J. Michael French
   
  J. Michael French
  President and Chief Executive Officer

 

Confirmed and Agreed:  
   
   
/s/ Philip C. Ranker  
Philip C. Ranker  

 

 
 

  

August 2, 2012

 

 

 

Richard T. Ho, M.D., Ph.D.

Executive Vice President, Research and Development

Marina Biotech, Inc.

E-Mail: RHO@marinabio.com

Re: Supplemental Work

 

Dear Richard:

 

You and Marina Biotech, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an Employment Agreement dated September 1, 2011 (as amended or modified from time to time, the “Agreement”). The Company, the Board, and myself are very appreciative of the work you have done and continue to do for the Company. The Company and its Board recognize the effect the financial state of the Company has had on its employees and management.

 

The Board therefore yesterday explicitly approved and ratified that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Agreement, you may engage in consulting and other similar work, not directly competitive with the Company, while employed by the Company. This supplemental work will not be deemed a breach of any duty or obligation to the Company, or any agreement with the Company, including without limitation the Agreement.

 

Please sign this letter below in confirmation and agreement.

 

  Very truly yours,
   
  /s/ J. Michael French
   
  J. Michael French
  President and Chief Executive Officer

 

Confirmed and Agreed:  
   
   
/s/ Richard T. Ho  
Richard T. Ho  

 

 

 
 

Marina Biotech Announces Worldwide Non-Exclusive Licensing Agreement for Nucleic Acid Chemistry

 

Bothell, WA, August 3, 2012 – Marina Biotech, Inc. (OTCQX: MRNA), a leading nucleic acid-based drug discovery and development company, announced today that it has entered into a licensing agreement with Novartis for Marina Biotech’s Conformationally Restricted Nucleotide (CRN) technology for the development of both single- and double-stranded oligonucleotide therapeutics. Marina Biotech will receive $1 million in upfront fees for the non-exclusive license.

 

“We are pleased to enter into this agreement with Novartis, a global leader in the development of human therapeutics,” stated J. Michael French, President and Chief Executive Officer of Marina Biotech. “Marina’s CRN is quite versatile and can be used to create stable, highly active oligonucleotide therapeutics and, in particular, both single- and double-stranded oligos. We view this license as yet another important validation of our nucleic acid-based drug discovery.”

 

About Marina Biotech, Inc.

 

Marina Biotech is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of oligonucleotide-based therapeutics utilizing multiple mechanisms of action including RNA interference (RNAi) and messenger RNA translational blocking. The Marina Biotech pipeline currently includes a clinical program in Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (a precancerous syndrome) and two preclinical programs -- in bladder cancer and malignant ascites. Marina Biotech entered into an exclusive agreement with The Debiopharm Group for the development and commercialization of the bladder cancer program. In addition, Marina Biotech has entered into an agreement with both Mirna Therapeutics and ProNAi Therapeutics to license Marina Biotech’s SMARTICLES® technology for the delivery of microRNA mimics and DNAi, respectively. Marina Biotech recently announced exclusive licensing agreements with Monsanto Company for Marina Biotech’s delivery and chemistry technologies and with Girindus America for the supply of CRN-based oligonucleotides. Marina Biotech's goal is to improve human health through the development of RNAi- and oligonucleotide-based compounds and drug delivery technologies that together provide superior therapeutic options for patients. Additional information about Marina Biotech is available at http://www.marinabio.com.

 

Forward-Looking Statements

 

Statements made in this news release may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Federal Securities laws that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and involve factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or suggested. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: (i) the ability of Marina Biotech to obtain additional funding in the near term; (ii) the ability of Marina Biotech to attract and/or maintain manufacturing, research, development and commercialization partners; (iii) the ability of Marina Biotech and/or a partner to successfully complete product research and development, including preclinical and clinical studies and commercialization; (iv) the ability of Marina Biotech and/or a partner to obtain required governmental approvals; and (v) the ability of Marina Biotech and/or a partner to develop and commercialize products prior to, and that can compete favorably with those of, competitors. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or suggested in any forward-looking statements are contained in Marina Biotech's most recent periodic reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Marina Biotech assumes no obligation to update and supplement forward-looking statements because of subsequent events.

 

Contact:

 

J. Michael French
Chief Executive Officer
(425) 908-3642
jmfrench@marinabio.com