UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

 

FORM 10-Q

 

QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF

THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the quarterly period ended June 30, 2013

 

Commission File Number: 333-178883

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Nevada   46-0524102
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization )   (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
     

One Broadway, 14 th Floor

Cambridge, Massachusetts

 

 

02142

(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

 

(617) 475-5254
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code
 
 
 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes T No £

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes T No £

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “non-accelerated filer,” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filer £ Accelerated filer ¨
   
Non-accelerated filer £ (Do not check if a smaller reporting company) Smaller reporting company   x

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes £ No T

 

As of August 13, 2013, there were 59,145,237 shares of the registrant’s common stock outstanding.

 

 

 
 

 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(formerly Almah, Inc.)

(A Development Stage Company)

Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q

For the Quarterly Period Ended June 30, 2013

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION   3
Item 1. Consolidated Financial Statements   3
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of June 30, 2013 (unaudited) and September 30, 2012   3
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three and nine months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012 and the period from inception (March 6, 2006) through June 30, 2013  

 

4

Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the nine months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012 and the period from inception ( March 6, 2006) through June 30, 2013  

 

5

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (unaudited)   6
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations   8
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk   15
Item 4. Controls and Procedures   15
PART II - OTHER INFORMATION   17
Item 1. Legal Proceedings   17
Item 1A. Risk Factors   17
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds   30
Item 5. Other Information   30
Item 6. Exhibits   30

 

2
 

 

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION

 

Item 1. Financial Statements (unaudited)

 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(formerly Almah, Inc.)

(A Development Stage Company)

 

Consolidated Balance Sheets

 

As of June 30, 2013 and September 30, 2012

 

ASSETS   June 30, 2013     September 30, 2012  
Current assets:                
Cash and cash equivalents   $ 476,369     $ 17,139  
Prepaid expenses and other current assets     1,121       3,308  
Total current assets     477,490       20,447  
               
Long Term Assets:                
Property and equipment, net     61       908  
               
Total assets   $ 477,551     $ 21,355  
               
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT)                
Current liabilities:                
Current maturities of convertible notes payable   $ -     $ 1,395,000  
Current maturities of convertible notes payable, related parties     -       105,000  
Notes payable, related party     -       275,200  
Accounts payable     307,548       258,426  
Accrued expenses and other liabilities     111,719       49,510  
Accrued interest     -       352,755  
Accrued interest to related parties     -       116,548  
Total current liabilities     419,267       2,552,439  
               
Long-term liabilities:                
Convertible notes payable, net of current maturities     -       235,000  
Accrued interest     -       6,351  
Total long-term liabilities     -       241,351  
               
Total liabilities     419,267       2,793,790  
               
Commitments and contingencies                
               
Stockholders’ equity (deficit):                
               
Common stock, $0.001 par value, 300,000,000 shares authorized at June 30, 2013 and 75,000,000 at September 30, 2012, 58,645,212 and 5,645,212 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2013 and September 30, 2012, respectively     58,646       5,645  
Additional paid in capital     3,669,971       -  
Deficit accumulated during the development stage     (3,670,333 )     (2,778,080 )
Total stockholders’ equity (deficit)     58,284       (2,772,435 )
               
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity (deficit)   $ 477,551     $ 21,355  

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements

 

 

3
 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(formerly Almah, Inc.)

(A Development Stage Company)

 

Consolidated Statements of Operations

 

  Three months ended
June 30, 2013
    Three months ended
June 30, 2012
    Nine months ended
June 30, 2013
    Nine months ended
June 30, 2012
    Period from Inception (March 6, 2006) through
June 30, 2013
 
Other revenues   $ -     $ -     $ -     $ -     $ 431,461  
                                         
Operating expenses:                                        
General and administrative expenses     451,046       118,560       721,565       225,841       2,857,530  
Research and development expenses     43,750       18,750       62,356       42,240       710,128  
Total operating expenses     494,796       137,310       783,921       268,081       3,567,658  
                                         
Operating loss     (494,796 )     (137,310 )     (783,921 )     (268,081 )     (3,136,197 )
                                         
Other (expense) income:                                        
Interest expense     (19,596 )     (39,233 )     (108,384 )     (114,702 )     (588,101 )
Other income (loss)     32       (290 )     51       174       53,965  
Total other expense     (19,565 )     (39,523 )     (108,333 )     (114,528 )     (534,136 )
                                         
Net loss   $ (514,361 )   $ (176,833 )   $ (892,254 )   $ (382,609 )   $ (3,670,333 )
                                         
Net loss per common share - basic and diluted   $ (0.06 )   $ (0.03 )   $ (0.13 )   $ (0.07 )      
                                         
Weighted average number of shares outstanding     8,549,322       5,638,813       6,613,249       5,636,618        

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements

 

4
 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(formerly Almah, Inc.)

(A Development Stage Company)

 

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

 

  Nine months ended
June 30, 2013
    Nine months ended
June 30, 2012
    Period from Inception (March 6, 2006) through
June 30, 2013
 
Cash flows from operating activities:                        
Net loss   $ (892,254 )   $ (382,609 )   $ (3,670,333 )
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to cash                        
used in operating activities:                        
Depreciation expense     847       2,589       18,994  
Other noncash adjustments     2,859       -       8,342  
Noncash interest expense on convertible notes payable     82,147       86,532       441,253  
Noncash interest expense on notes payable to related party     25,599       27,790       142,057  
Issuance of common stock for services     -       -       253  
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:                  
(Increase) decrease in:                  
Prepaid expenses and other current assets     2,187       3,955       (1,121 )
Increase (decrease) in:                        
Accounts payable     49,122       114,885       307,548  
Accrued expenses and other liabilities     62,211       (4,768 )     111,718  
Net cash used in operating activities     (667,281 )     (151,625 )     (2,641,288 )
                       
Cash flows from investing activities:                        
Purchases of property and equipment     -       -       (19,054 )
Net cash used in investing activities     -       -       (19,054 )
                       
Cash flows from financing activities:                        
Proceeds from common stock issued in merger     1,250,000       -       1,250,000  
Repayment of notes payable and accrued interest to related party     (373,488 )     -       (373,488 )
Proceeds from issuance of notes payable     -       -       275,200  
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes payable     250,000       135,000       1,985,000  
Net cash provided by financing activities     1,126,512       135,000       3,136,712  
                       
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents     459,230       (16,626 )     476,369  
                       
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period     17,139       36,775       -  
                       
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period   $ 476,369     $ 20,149     $ 476,369  
                       
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:                        
Cash paid during the period for:                        
Interest   $ 98,288     $ -     $ 98,288  
                       
Income taxes   $ -     $ -     $ -  

   

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements

 

5
 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

(formerly Almah, Inc.)

(A Development Stage Company)

 

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Unaudited)

 

1. BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS

 

Organization and Description of Business

 

Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) was incorporated under the laws of State of Nevada on September 16, 2009 under the name “Almah, Inc.” to pursue the business of distributing automobile spare parts online. Effective June 26, 2013, the Company completed a merger (the “Merger ”) with Arch Biosurgery, Inc. (formerly known as Arch Therapeutics, Inc.), a Massachusetts corporation (“ABS”), and Arch Acquisition Corporation (“Merger Sub”), the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary formed for the purpose of the transaction, pursuant to which Merger Sub merged with and into ABS and ABS thereby became the wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. As a result of the acquisition of ABS, the Company has abandoned its prior business plan and has changed its operations to the business of developing polymers comprising synthetic peptides intended to form gel-like barriers over wounds to stop or control bleeding and seal wounds. The Company is in the development stage and has generated no operating revenues to date. The Company is currently devoting substantially all of its efforts toward product research and development. Also in connection with the Merger, we relocated our principal office to Cambridge, Massachusetts.

 

ABS was incorporated under the laws of Commonwealth of Massachusetts on March 6, 2006 as Clear Nano Solutions, Inc. On April 7, 2008, ABS changed its name to Arch Therapeutics, Inc. Effective upon the closing of the Merger, ABS changed its name from Arch Therapeutics, Inc. to Arch Biosurgery, Inc.

 

Basis of Presentation

 

The accompanying unaudited interim financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 8-03 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, these interim financial statements do not include all of the information and disclosures required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. In management’s opinion, the interim financial statements and accompanying condensed notes reflect all adjustments, consisting of normal and recurring adjustments, that are necessary for a fair presentation of these financial statements.

 

The results of operations for the interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for other interim periods or for the entire year. This information should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto included as of and for the year ended September 30, 2012 in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 31, 2012 and in the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 26, 2013.

 

The Company does not currently believe its existing cash resources are sufficient to meet its anticipated needs during the next twelve months. As reflected in the financial statements, the Company has an accumulated deficit, has suffered significant net losses and negative cash flows from operations, and has limited working capital. The Company expects to incur substantial expenditures for the foreseeable future for the research, development and commercialization of its potential products. In addition, the Company will require additional financing in order to seek to license or acquire new assets, research and develop any potential patents and the related compounds, and obtain any further intellectual property that the Company may seek to acquire. The Company does not have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to support its current operating plan. The Company will be required to raise additional capital, obtain alternative means of financial support, or both, in order to continue to fund operations. Therefore, there exists substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Historically, the Company has funded its operations primarily through equity and debt financings and it expects that it will continue to fund its operations through equity and debt financing. If the Company raises additional financing by issuing equity securities, its existing stockholders’ ownership will be diluted. Obtaining commercial loans, assuming those loans would be available, will increase the Company’s liabilities and future cash commitments.

 

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and the settlement of liabilities and commitments in the normal course of business. There is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern as the continuation of the Company’s business is dependent upon obtaining additional financing and the continued support of its stockholders to aid in financing operations. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from this uncertainty.

 

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiary as of June 26, 2013, ABS. All significant inter-company balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

 

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

 

Basis of Accounting

 

The Company is in development stage and is devoting substantially all of its efforts to raising capital, developing technologies, establishing customer and vendor relationships, and recruiting new employees. Accordingly, the accompanying financial statements are presented under the development stage accounting provisions of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).

 

6
 

 

Use of Estimates

 

Management is required to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the dates of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

 

For a complete summary of our significant accounting policies, refer to Note 2 of our audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2012 in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on December 31, 2012 and in the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 26, 2013. There have been no material changes to our significant accounting policies during the nine months ended June 30, 2013.

 

Subsequent Events

 

The Company evaluated all events or transactions that occurred through August 14, 2013, the date which these consolidated financial statements were available to be issued. The Company disclosed material subsequent events in Note 7.

 

3. MERGER

 

On June 26, 2013, a Merger (“the Merger”) was completed by Arch Acquisition Corporation, a Massachusetts corporation and the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary formed for the purpose of the transaction (“Merger Sub”) and Arch Biosurgery, Inc. (formerly known as Arch Therapeutics, Inc.), a Massachusetts corporation (“ABS”) with ABS surviving the Merger as the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary. Upon the closing of the Merger, all of the issued and outstanding capital stock and convertible notes of ABS were exchanged for an aggregate of 14,645,212 shares of the Company’s common stock. Also, in connection with the Merger, the warrants of ABS were cancelled. For financial reporting purposes, the Merger represents a “reverse merger” rather than a business combination and ABS is deemed to be the accounting acquirer in the transaction. Consequently, the assets and liabilities and the historical operations that will be reflected in the Company’s consolidated financial statements will be those of ABS. The Company’s assets, liabilities and results of operations have been consolidated with the assets, liabilities and results of operations of ABS after consummation of the Merger June 26, 2013, and the historical financial statements of the Company before the Merger will be replaced with the historical financial statements of ABS before the Merger in all future filings with the SEC.

 

4. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

 

Beginning in June 2006 through December 2008, the Company issued interest bearing convertible notes with related parties for aggregate cash proceeds of $105,000, of which $50,000 matured January 1, 2013. The notes were convertible into a number of shares of convertible preferred stock upon the closing of a preferred equity financing of at least $1,000,000 by dividing the principle and accrued interest by the purchase price of the convertible preferred stock (“conversion price”). In connection with the notes, the Company issued warrants to purchase additional shares of convertible preferred stock at the conversion price equal to an aggregate amount of 20% of the principle balance of the notes. On June 26, 2013, the noteholders agreed to the exchange of the notes, accrued interest and cancel the warrants in exchange for the Company’s common stock in connection with the Merger described in Note 3.

 

 

5. CONVERTIBLE NOTES PAYABLE

 

During December 2012 and January 2013 the Company issued convertible notes for cash proceeds of $250,000. The notes accrued interest at 8% per year. In connection with the notes, the Company issued warrants to purchase shares of convertible preferred stock. The notes were convertible into a number of shares of convertible preferred stock upon the closing of a preferred equity financing of at least $1,000,000 by dividing the principle and accrued interest by the purchase price of the convertible preferred stock (“conversion price”). In connection with the notes, the Company issued warrants to purchase additional shares of convertible preferred stock at the conversion price equal to an aggregate amount of 20% of the principle balance of the notes. On June 26, 2013, the noteholders agreed to the exchange of the notes (with a total aggregate principal balance of $1,880,000) and accrued interest and cancel the warrants in exchange for the Company’s common stock in in connection with the Merger described in Note 3.

 

6. COLDSTREAM FINANCING

 

In contemplation of the Merger, on April 19, 2013, the Company entered into a financing agreement (the “Financing Agreement”) with Coldstream Summit Ltd. (“Coldstream”) agreeing to issue and sell, and Coldstream agreed to purchase or assist in securing the purchase of, $2,000,000 worth of units in a private offering within the 12 month period following the closing of the Merger (the “Coldstream Financing”). Each unit issued in the Coldstream Financing is to be sold at a price of $0.50 per share and is to consist of (i) one share of common stock and (ii) one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share and with a term of 12 months. As of June 30, 2013, the Company has issued and sold units consisting of 2,500,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 2,500,000 shares of our common stock in the Coldstream Financing to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream, for gross proceeds of $1,250,000.

 

7. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

 

On July 1, 2013, pursuant to the Coldstream Financing described in Note 6, the Company issued and sold additional units consisting of 500,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 500,000 shares of common stock to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream for gross proceeds of $250,000.

 

7
 

 

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 

 

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this quarterly report. This section and other sections of this report contain forward looking statements. We make forward-looking statements, as defined by the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and in some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “if,” “shall,” “may,” “might,” “will likely result,” “should,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” “goal,” “objective,” “predict,” “potential” or “continue,” or the negative of these terms and other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements, which are based on various underlying assumptions and expectations and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other unknown factors, may include projections of our future financial performance based on our growth strategies and anticipated trends in our business. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events that we believe to be reasonable. There are important factors that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the historical or future results, level of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, those discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in this report. We undertake no duty to update any of these forward-looking statements after the date of filing of this report to conform such forward-looking statements to actual results or revised expectations, except as otherwise required by law.

 

Corporate Overview

 

Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) was incorporated under the laws of the State of Nevada on September 16, 2009 under the name “Almah, Inc.” to pursue the business of distributing automobile spare parts online. Effective June 26, 2013, the Company completed a merger (the “Merger ”) with Arch Biosurgery, Inc. (formerly known as Arch Therapeutics, Inc.), a Massachusetts corporation (“ABS”), and Arch Acquisition Corporation (“Merger Sub”), the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary formed for the purpose of the transaction, pursuant to which Merger Sub merged with and into ABS and ABS thereby became the wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. As a result of the acquisition of ABS, the Company has abandoned its prior business plan and has changed its operations to the business of developing polymers comprising synthetic peptides intended to form gel-like barriers over wounds to stop or control bleeding and seal wounds. The Company is in the development stage and has generated no operating revenues to date. The Company is currently devoting substantially all of its efforts toward product research and development. Also in connection with the Merger, we relocated our principal office to Cambridge, Massachusetts. For financial reporting purposes, the Merger represents a “reverse merger” rather than a business combination and ABS is deemed to be the accounting acquirer in the transaction. Consequently, the assets and liabilities and the historical operations that will be reflected in the Company’s consolidated financial statements will be those of ABS. The Company’s assets, liabilities and results of operations have been consolidated with the assets, liabilities and results of operations of ABS after consummation of the Merger June 26, 2013, and the historical financial statements of the Company before the Merger will be replaced with the historical financial statements of ABS before the Merger in all future filings with the SEC.

 

ABS was incorporated under the laws of Commonwealth of Massachusetts on March 6, 2006 as Clear Nano Solutions, Inc. On April 7, 2008, ABS changed its name to Arch Therapeutics, Inc. Effective upon the closing of the Merger, ABS changed its name from Arch Therapeutics, Inc. to Arch Biosurgery, Inc.

 

In contemplation of the Merger, effective May 24, 2013, the Company increased its authorized common stock from 75,000,000 shares to 300,000,000 shares and effected a forward stock split, by way of a stock dividend, of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock at a ratio of 11 shares to each one (1) issued and outstanding share. The accompanying consolidated financial statements for interim and annual prior periods presented have been retroactively adjusted to reflect the effects of the forward stock split. Also in contemplation of the Merger, effective June 5, 2013, the Company changed its name from Almah, Inc. to Arch Therapeutics, Inc. and changed the ticker symbol under which its common stock trades on the OTC Bulletin Board from “AACH” to “ARTH”.

 

For a discussion and analysis of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations prior to the Merger, please refer to the information set forth under the heading “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” as well as the related financial statements, in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2012 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 31, 2012, in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 filed with the SEC on May 20, 2013 and in the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 26, 2013.

 

Liquidity

 

As further discussed in “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below, we will need to raise additional funds in order to continue operating our business. We do not currently believe our existing cash resources are sufficient to meet its anticipated needs during the next twelve months.

 

8
 

 

Business Overview

 

We are a life science medical device company in the development stage with limited operations to date. We aim to develop products that make surgery and interventional care faster and safer by utilizing a novel approach that stops bleeding (referenced as “hemostasis”), controls leaking (referenced as “sealant”), and provides other advantages during surgery and trauma care. Our core technology is based on a self-assembling peptide solution that creates a physical, mechanical barrier, which could be applied to bleeding organs or wounds to seal leaking blood and other fluids. We believe our technology could support an innovative platform of potential products in the field of stasis and barrier applications. Our first product candidate, AC5™, is designed to achieve hemostasis in minimally invasive and open surgical procedures, and we hope to develop other hemostatic or sealant product candidates in the future based on our self-assembling peptide technology platform. Our plan and business model is to develop products that apply that core technology to human bodily fluids and connective tissues.

 

Our primary product candidate, AC5, relies on this technology to achieve hemostasis during surgical procedures. AC5 is a biocompatible synthetic peptide comprising naturally occurring amino acids. When applied to a wound, AC5 intercalates into the interstices of the connective tissue where it self-assembles into a physical, mechanical nanoscale structure that provides a barrier to leaking substances, such as blood. The results of early data from preclinical animal tests have shown that AC5 achieves hemostasis quickly and effectively. AC5 can be directly applied as a liquid or sprayed, making it user-friendly and able to conform to irregular wound geometry, and is not sticky or glue-like, making it ideal for use in the setting of minimally invasive laparoscopic surgeries. Further, AC5 is transparent, which should make it easier for a surgeon or other healthcare provider to maintain a clear field of vision during a surgical procedure and prophylactically stop bleeding as it starts, which we call Crystal Clear Surgery™.

 

We have devoted much of our operations to date to the development of our core technology, including selecting our lead product composition, conducting initial safety and other related tests, generating scale-up, reproducibility and manufacturing methods, and developing and protecting the intellectual property rights underlying our technology platform.

 

Our long-term business plan includes the following goals:

 

expanding our intellectual property portfolio;
conducting successful clinical trials on AC5;
obtaining regulatory approval or certification of AC5 in the European Union (the “EU”), the U.S., and other jurisdictions;

developing appropriate third party relationships to manufacture, distribute, market and otherwise commercialize AC5; and

develop additional product candidates in the hemostatic and sealant field.

 

In furtherance of our long-term business goals, we expect to focus on the following activities during the remainder of calendar year 2013 and calendar year 2014:

 

further developing and securing our intellectual property rights;
engaging a large scale manufacturing partner to produce cGMP product for clinical trials;
participating in EU and, subsequently, U.S. regulatory meetings;
preparing for initial clinical trials, including developing clinical trial protocols;
conducting formal biocompatibility studies; and
commencing human clinical trials.

 

Recent Developments

 

Acquisition of ABS and Related Activities

 

In contemplation of the Merger, effective May 24, 2013, the Company increased its authorized common stock from 75,000,000 shares to 300,000,000 shares and effected a forward stock split, by way of a stock dividend, of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock at a ratio of 11 shares to each one (1) issued and outstanding share. Also in contemplation of the Merger, effective June 5, 2013, the Company changed its name from Almah, Inc. to Arch Therapeutics, Inc. and changed the ticker symbol under which its common stock trades on the OTC Bulletin Board from “AACH” to “ARTH”.

   

As described above, effective June 26, 2013, the Company completed the Merger with ABS, pursuant to which ABS became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. As a result of the acquisition of ABS, the Company has abandoned its prior business plan and has changed its operations to the business of developing polymers comprising synthetic peptides intended to form gel-like barriers over wounds to stop or control bleeding and seal wounds. The Company is in the development stage and has generated no operating revenues to date. The Company is currently devoting substantially all of its efforts toward product research and development. Also in connection with the Merger, we relocated our principal office to Cambridge, Massachusetts.

 

9
 

 

For financial reporting purposes, the Merger represents a “reverse merger” rather than a business combination and ABS is deemed to be the accounting acquirer in the transaction. Consequently, the assets and liabilities and the historical operations that will be reflected in the Company’s consolidated financial statements will be those of ABS. The Company’s assets, liabilities and results of operations have been consolidated with the assets, liabilities and results of operations of ABS after consummation of the Merger June 25, 2013, and the historical financial statements of the Company before the Merger will be replaced with the historical financial statements of ABS before the Merger in all future filings with the SEC.

 

Coldstream Financing

 

In contemplation of the Merger, on April 19, 2013, the Company entered into a financing agreement (the “Financing Agreement”) with Coldstream Summit Ltd. (“Coldstream”) agreeing to issue and sell, and Coldstream agreed to purchase or assist in securing the purchase of, $2,000,000 worth of units in a private offering within the 12 month period following the closing of the Merger (the “Coldstream Financing”). Each unit issued in the Coldstream Financing is to be sold at a price of $0.50 per share and is to consist of (i) one share of common stock and (ii) one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share and with a term of 12 months. As of June 30, 2013, the Company has issued and sold units consisting of 2,500,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 2,500,000 shares of common stock in the Coldstream Financing to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream, for aggregate gross proceeds of $1,250,000. On July 1, 2013, pursuant to the Coldstream Financing, the Company issued and sold additional units consisting of 500,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 500,000 shares of common stock to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream for gross proceeds of $250,000 (the “July Closing”). Following the July Closing, the Company may raise an additional $500,000 in financing pursuant to the Financing Agreement.

 

Adoption of 2013 Equity Incentive Plan

 

On June 18, 2013, our Board of Directors adopted the 2013 Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) and reserved 7,825,388 shares of the Company’s common stock for issuance thereunder to employees, officers and consultants of the Company. Also on June 18, 2013, stockholders holding a majority of our outstanding common stock executed a written consent approving and adopting the Plan. Pursuant to the approval of our Board of Directors and our stockholders, the adoption of the Plan became effective on June 18, 2013.

 

Adoption of Amended and Restated Bylaws

 

Also on June 18, 2013, our Board of Directors and stockholders holding at least a majority of the outstanding shares of our common stock approved the amendment and restatement of our bylaws (the “Restated Bylaws”). The Restated Bylaws are different than our prior bylaws in various respects, including with respect to the procedures by which special meetings of stockholders may be called, the prohibition on stockholder actions by written consent, the procedures applicable to stockholder proposals and director nominations, the number of directors that may be elected or appointed to our Board, the procedures applicable to the removal of directors, our ability to issue uncertificated shares of our common stock, our ability to communicate electronically with our stockholders, the indemnification of our directors and officers, future amendments to the Restated Bylaws, and the exclusion of certain provisions of the Nevada Revised Statutes relating to the acquisition of our securities that may constitute a controlling interest, among other substantive and stylistic changes.

 

Appointment of Chief Operating Officer

 

Effective July 8, 2013, we appointed Mr. William M. Cotter as our Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Cotter is an industry veteran who brings expertise in operations and product development to his role with the Company. In connection with Mr. Cotter’s appointment, the Company has entered into an executive employment agreement with Mr. Cotter. The agreement continues until terminated by the Company or by Mr. Cotter. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, Mr. Cotter is entitled to an initial annual base salary of $175,000 and is eligible to receive an annual cash bonus in an amount of up to 20% of Mr. Cotter’s then-current annual base salary. Annual bonuses are awarded at the sole discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors.

 

 

Results of Operations

 

The following discussion of our results of operations should be read together with the financial statements included in this quarterly report. The period to period comparisons of our interim results of operations that follow are not necessarily indicative of future results.

 

10
 

 

Three Months Ended June 30, 2012 Compared to Three Months Ended June 30, 2013

 

    June 30,     June 30,     Increase  
    2013     2012     (Decrease)  
    ($)     ($)     ($)  
Revenue     0       0       0  
Operating Expenses                        
General and Administrative     451,046       118,560       332,486  
Research and Development     43,750       18,750       25,000  
(Loss) from Operations     (494,796 )     (137,310 )     357,486  
Other income (expense)     (19,565 )     (39,523 )     (19,958 )
Net income (loss)     (514,361 )     (176,833 )     337,528  

 

Revenue

 

We did not generate any operating revenue in either of the three months ended June 30, 2013 or 2012.

 

General and Administrative Expense

 

We incurred general and administrative expense during the three months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $451,046, compared to general and administrative expense incurred during the three months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $118,560 (an increase of $332,486). Our general and administrative expenses during those periods primarily included legal fees, patent prosecution costs, payroll related expenses and office overhead. The increase in general and administrative expense period over period is primarily attributable to increased costs associated with legal and accounting fees incurred in connection with the Merger partially offset by a decrease in patent prosecution costs.

 

General and administrative expenses are generally expected to increase as a result of plans to ramp up operations and requirements to comply with public company reporting obligations. We expect increased expenses related to plans to hire additional personnel and consultants and expected incurrence of additional legal fees.

 

Research and Development Expense

 

We incurred research and development expense during the three months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $43,750, compared to research and development expense incurred during the three months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $18,750 (an increase of $25,000). Our research and development expenses primarily relate to our activities to develop our primary product candidate, and are comprised mostly of payroll related expenses. The increase in research and development expense between periods is primarily attributable to increase in payroll related expenses.

 

Research and development expenses are expected to increase as a result of plans to pursue additional preclinical and clinical studies and otherwise relating to development of our primary product candidate.

 

Other Income (Expense)

 

We incurred total other expenses during the three months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $19,565, compared to total other expenses incurred during the three months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $39,523 (a decrease of $19,958). Other expenses during those periods were primarily interest accrued on debt. The decrease in other expense between periods is attributable to suspension of interest accrual beyond April 30, 2013 in connection with the exchange of debt in the Merger.

 

Nine Months Ended June 30, 2012 Compared to Nine Months Ended June 30, 2013

 

    June 30,     June 30,     Increase  
    2013     2012     (Decrease)  
    ($)     ($)     ($)  
Revenue     0       0       0  
Operating Expenses                        
General and Administrative     721,565       225,841       495,724  
Research and Development     62,356       42,240       20,116  
(Loss) from Operations     (783,921 )     (268,081 )     515,840  
Other income (expense)     (108,333 )     (114,528 )     (6,195 )
Net income (loss)     (892,254 )     (382,609 )     509,645  

 

11
 

 

Revenue

 

We did not generate any revenue in either of the nine months ended June 30, 2013 or 2012.

 

General and Administrative Expense

 

We incurred general and administrative expense during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $721,565, compared to general and administrative expense incurred during the nine months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $225,841 (an increase of $495,724). Our general and administrative expenses during those periods primarily included legal fees, patent prosecution costs, payroll related expenses, license maintenance fees, professional fees and office overhead. The increase in general and administrative expense period over period is primarily attributable to increased costs associated with legal and accounting fees incurred in connection with the Merger partially offset by a decrease in patent prosecution costs.

 

General and administrative expenses are generally expected to increase as a result of plans to ramp up operations and requirements to comply with public company reporting obligations. We expect increased expenses related to plans to hire additional personnel and consultants and expected incurrence of additional legal fees.

 

Research and Development Expense

 

We incurred research and development expense during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $62,356, compared to research and development expense incurred during the nine months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $42,240 (an increase of $20,116). Our research and development expenses primarily relate to our activities to develop our primary product candidate, and are comprised of payroll related expenses, advisor fees and cost of materials. The increase in research and development expense between periods is primarily attributable to increases in payroll related expenses.

 

Research and development expenses are expected to increase as a result of plans to pursue additional preclinical and clinical studies and otherwise relating to development of our primary product candidate.

 

Other Income (Expense)

 

We incurred total other expenses during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 in the amount of $108,333 compared to total other expenses incurred during the nine months ended June 30, 2012 in the amount of $114,528 (a decrease of $6,195). Other expenses during those periods were primarily interest accrued on debt. The decrease in other expense between periods is attributable to suspension of interest accrual beyond April 30, 2013 in connection with the exchange of debt in the Merger.

 

 

Liquidity and Capital Resources

 

Working Capital

 

Our working capital as of June 30, 2013 and September 30, 2012 is summarized as follows:

 

  June 30,     September 30,  
  2013     2012  
Total Current Assets   $ 477,490     $ 20,447  
Total Current Liabilities     419,267       2,552,439  
Working Capital   $ 58,223     $ (2,531,992 )

 

 

12
 

 

As of June 30, 2013, total current assets were $477,490, compared to total current assets of $20,447 as of September 30, 2012 (an increase of $457,043). The increase was due to an increase in cash balances resulting from issuance of convertible debt and funds received in connection with the Merger greater than operating expenditures and repayment of related party debt and accrued interest. Our total current assets as of June 30, 2013 were comprised primarily of cash, cash equivalents and prepaid expenses.

 

As of June 30, 2013, total current liabilities were $419,267, compared to total current liabilities of $2,552,439 as of September 30, 2012 (a decrease of $2,133,172). The decrease was primarily due to cancellation of current maturities of outstanding debt and accrued interest on debt in connection with the Merger partially offset by an increase in accrued expenses. Our total current liabilities as of June 30, 2013 were comprised primarily of accounts payable and accrued expenses.

 

As a result, on June 30, 2013, we had working capital of $58,223.

 

Cash Flow

 

Our cash on-hand as of June 30, 2013 was $476,369, compared to cash on-hand as of September 30, 2012 of $17,139 (an increase of $459,230). The increase was primarily due to issuance of convertible debt and funds received in connection with the Merger greater than operating expenditures and repayment of related party debt and accrued interest.

 

Cash Used in Operating Activities

 

Cash used in operating activities during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 was $667,281, compared to cash used in operating activities during the nine months ended June 30, 2012 of $151,625 (an increase of $515,656). The increase was primarily due to an increase in general and administrative expense attributable to increased costs associated with legal and accounting fees incurred in connection with the Merger partially offset by a decrease in patent prosecution costs.

 

Cash Used in Investing Activities

 

There was no cash used in investing activities during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 or 2012, respectively.

 

Cash Provided by Financing Activities

 

Cash provided by financing activities during the nine months ended June 30, 2013 was $1,126,512, compared to cash provided by financing activities during the nine months ended June 30, 2012 of $135,000 (an increase of $991,512). The increase in cash provided by financing activities was obtained from issuances of convertible promissory notes and amounts advanced under the Coldstream Financing reduced by the repayment of certain notes payable to the CEO and accrued interest.

 

Sources of Capital

 

Prior to the closing of the Merger, we had primarily funded our operations through the issuance of convertible debt and other promissory notes and related warrants. Other than such financing activities, we have had no sources of material funding to date. Since inception through June 30, 2013, we had received an aggregate of $1,985,000 from our issuance of the convertible notes and related warrants. In contemplation of the Merger, the Company obtained a commitment under the Coldstream Financing totaling $2,000,000 to fund our operations. Of that amount, gross proceeds of $1,250,000 have been received as of June 30, 2013. On July 1, 2013, pursuant to the Coldstream Financing, the Company sold and issued additional units consisting of 500,000 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 500,000 shares of our common stock to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream for aggregate gross proceeds of $250,000 (the “July Closing”). Following the July Closing, the Company may raise an additional $500,000 in financing pursuant to the Financing Agreement.

 

13
 

 

Cash Requirements

 

As described above, we anticipate that our operating and other expenses will increase following the closing of the Merger as we implement our business plan. After giving effect to the funds received in the recent equity and debt financings, committed funding under the Coldstream Financing over the next six months and we estimate as of June 30, 2013 we will have sufficient funds to operate the business for the next 9 months’ however, based on our current operating expenses and working capital requirements, we do not currently believe our existing cash resources are sufficient to meet our anticipated needs during the next twelve months. In addition to the funds raised or available pursuant to the Coldstream Financing, we will require additional financing to fund our planned future operations, including the continuation of our ongoing research and development efforts, seeking to license or acquire new assets, and researching and developing any potential patents, the related compounds and any further intellectual property that we may acquire. Further, these estimates could differ if we encounter unanticipated difficulties, in which case our current funds may not be sufficient to operate our business for that period. In addition, our estimates of the amount of cash necessary to operate our business may prove to be wrong, and we could spend our available financial resources much faster than we currently expect.

 

Other than the funding committed under the Coldstream Financing, we do not have any firm commitments for future capital. Even after giving effect to those additional committed funds, significant additional financing will be required to fund our planned operations in the near term and in future periods, including research and development activities relating to our principal product candidate, seeking regulatory approval of that or any other product candidate we may choose to develop, commercializing any product candidate for which we are able to obtain regulatory approval or certification, seeking to license or acquire new assets or business, and maintaining our intellectual property rights and pursuing rights to new technologies. We do not presently have, nor do we expect in the near future to have, revenue to fund our business from our operations, and will need to obtain all of our necessary funding from external sources in the near term. We may not be able to obtain additional financing on commercially reasonable or acceptable terms when needed, or at all. If we cannot raise the money that we need in order to continue to develop our business, we will be forced to delay, scale back or eliminate some or all of our proposed operations. If any of these were to occur, there is a substantial risk that our business would fail and our stockholders could lose all of their investments.

 

Going Concern

 

From inception through June 30, 2013 have not received operating revenues from sales of products or services, and have recurring losses from operations. As of June 30, 2013, we had incurred a net loss of $3,670,333 since our inception. The continuation of our business as a going concern is dependent upon raising additional capital and eventually attaining and maintaining profitable operations. The financial statements included in this Form 10-Q do not include any adjustments relating to the recoverability of assets that might be necessary should operations discontinue.

 

Critical Accounting Policies and Significant Judgments and Estimates

 

Pursuant to certain disclosure guidance issued by the SEC, the SEC defines “critical accounting policies” as those that require the application of management’s most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain and may change in subsequent periods. Our critical accounting policies that we anticipate will require the application of our most difficult, subjective or complex judgments are as follows:

 

Basis of Presentation — Development Stage Company

 

We have not earned any revenue from operations. Accordingly, our activities have been accounted for as those of a “Development Stage Company” as set forth in Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) ASC 915. Among the disclosures required by ASC 915 are that our financial statements be identified as those of a development stage company, and that the statements of operations, stockholders’ deficit and cash flows disclose activity since the date of our inception.

 

Income Taxes

 

In accordance with FASB ASC 740, Income Taxes, we recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences or events that have been included in our financial statements and/or tax returns. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are based upon the differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and the tax bases of existing assets and liabilities and for loss and credit carryforwards using enacted tax rates expected to be in effect in the years in which the differences are expected to reverse. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance if it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized.

 

14
 

 

We provide reserves for potential payments of tax to various tax authorities related to uncertain tax positions when management determines that it is probable that a loss will be incurred related to these matters and the amount of the loss is reasonably determinable. We have no reserves related to uncertain tax positions as of June 30, 2013 and September 30, 2012.

 

Recent Accounting Guidance

 

Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2013-11, “Income Taxes (Topic 740) - Presentation of an Unrecognized Tax Benefit When a Net Operating Loss Carryforward, a Similar Tax Loss, or a Tax Credit Carryforward Exists” was issued in July 2013.  The amendments in this Update are effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2013.  Early adoption is permitted.  The amendments should be applied prospectively to all unrecognized tax benefits that exist at the effective date. Retrospective application is permitted. The Company does not expect adoption of this ASU to have a material impact on its financial statements.  

 

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

 

We have no significant off-balance sheet arrangements that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on our financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that is material to stockholders.

 

Item 3.—Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

 

Not applicable

 

Item 4.—Controls and Procedures

 

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

 

We carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer (who is our Principal Executive Officer) and our Chief Financial Officer (who is our Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer), of the effectiveness of the design of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined by Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e)) as of June 30, 2013, pursuant to Exchange Act Rule 13a-15. Based upon that evaluation, our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective as of June 30, 2013 in ensuring that information required to be disclosed by us in reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) rules and forms. This conclusion is based on findings that constituted material weaknesses. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of control deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the Company’s interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.

 

As of June 30, 2013 management has identified the following material weaknesses:

 

(i) We have had insufficient quantity of dedicated resources and experienced personnel involved in reviewing and designing internal controls. As a result, a material misstatement of the interim and annual financial statements could occur and not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.

 

(ii) We have not had personnel with formal training to properly analyze and record complex transactions in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

 

(iii) We have not achieved the optimal level of segregation of duties relative to key financial reporting functions.

 

(iv) We do not have an audit committee, which is an important entity-level control over our financial statements and the engagement of our independent auditors.

 

(v) We did not perform an entity level risk assessment to evaluate the implication of relevant risks on financial reporting, including the impact of potential fraud-related risks and the risks related to non-routine transactions, if any, on our internal control over financial reporting. Lack of an entity-level risk assessment constituted an internal control design deficiency which resulted in more than a remote likelihood that a material error would not have been prevented or detected, and constituted a material weakness.

 

15
 

 

Remediation

 

Effective June 26, 2013, the Company completed a Merger with ABS.  Also in connection with the Merger, our principal office was relocated to Cambridge, Massachusetts. With the closing of the Merger, we now have adequate resources with the experience to review and design internal controls as well as the experience and formal training to properly analyze and record complex transactions in accordance with U.S. GAAP and to ensure that we have adequate segregation of duties to key financial reporting functions.

 

We have reviewed our disclosure controls and procedures related to these material weaknesses following the closing of the Merger and expect to implement changes in the near term, including identifying specific areas within our governance, accounting and financial reporting processes that will address our material weaknesses. On an annual basis, management is responsible for performing an entity level risk assessment to evaluate the implication of relevant risks on financial reporting, including the impact of potential fraud-related risks and the risks related to non-routine transactions, if any, on our internal control over financial reporting.  This annual assessment is scheduled for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2013. In lieu of an audit committee, we utilize our board of directors as an important entity-level control over our financial statements and the engagement of our independent auditors. We are currently seeking an external financial expert for our board.

 

Our management team will continue to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of our internal controls and procedures and our internal controls over financial reporting on an ongoing basis and is committed to taking further action and implementing additional enhancements or improvements.

 

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.

 

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

 

Other than the ongoing remediation efforts identified above, there were no changes in our internal controls over financial reporting that occurred during the quarterly period ended June 30, 2013 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal controls over financial reporting. We believe that a control system, no matter how well designed and operated, cannot provide absolute assurance that the objectives of the control system are met, and no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within any company have been detected.

 

16
 

 

PART II.—OTHER INFORMATION

 

Item 1.—Legal Proceedings

 

From time to time, we may become involved in various lawsuits and legal proceedings which arise in the ordinary course of business. The impact and outcome of litigation, if any, is subject to inherent uncertainties, and an adverse result in these or other matters may arise from time to time that may harm our business. We are not currently a party to any proceedings the adverse outcome of which, individually or in the aggregate, would have a material adverse effect on our financial position or results of operations.

 

Item 1A.—Risk Factors

 

RISK FACTORS

 

Investment in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. The risk factors described below summarize some of the material risks inherent in and affecting our business. You should carefully consider the following risk factors before making an investment decision. If any of the following risks and uncertainties actually occurs, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be negatively impacted and you could lose all or part of your investment.

 

Risks Related to our Business

 

We have incurred significant losses since inception. We expect to continue to incur losses for the foreseeable future as we pursue our operations as a combined enterprise, and we may never generate revenue or achieve or maintain profitability.

 

We have incurred losses in each year since our inception and we expect that losses will continue to be incurred in the foreseeable future in the operation of our new business. To date, we have financed our operations entirely through investments by founders and other investors, and we expect to continue to do so in the foreseeable future. Losses from operations have resulted principally from costs incurred in research and development programs and from general and administrative expenses, including significant costs associated with establishing and maintaining intellectual property rights, significant legal and accounting costs pertaining to the closing of the Merger and related regulatory filings, and personnel. We have devoted substantially all of our time, money and efforts to date to the advancement of our technology, and expect to continue to devote significant time, money and efforts to such activities going forward.

 

We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and we anticipate that those expenses and losses may increase in the foreseeable future as we seek to:

 

· develop our principal product candidate, AC5™;

· conduct clinical trials relating to AC5 and any other product candidate we seek to develop;

· attempt to gain regulatory approvals for any product candidate that successfully completes clinical trials;

· invest in product and process development through contract manufacturing partners;

· maintain, expand and protect our intellectual property portfolio;

· seek to commercialize selected product candidates for which we may obtain regulatory approval;

· hire additional regulatory, clinical, quality control, scientific and management consultants and personnel; and

· support and add operational, financial, accounting, facilities engineering and information systems consultants and personnel to further our operations.

 

To become and remain profitable, we must succeed in developing and eventually commercializing product candidates with significant market potential. This will require us to be successful in a range of challenging activities, including successfully completing preclinical testing and clinical trials of product candidates, obtaining regulatory approval for our product candidates and manufacturing, marketing and selling any products for which we may obtain regulatory approval. We are only in the preliminary stages of most of those activities. We may never succeed in those activities and may never generate operating revenues or achieve profitability. Even if we do generate operating revenues sufficient to achieve profitability, we may not be able to sustain or increase profitability. Our failure to generate operating revenues or become and remain profitable would impair our ability to raise capital, expand our business or continue our operations, all of which would depress the price of our common stock. A decline in the prices of our common stock could cause our stockholders to lose all or a part of their investment in the Company.

 

17
 

 

There is substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

 

We have not generated any revenue from operations since inception, and we have incurred substantial net losses to date. Further, our operating expenses will likely increase in the foreseeable future, as we seek to increase operations as a life sciences medical device company. Moreover, our cash position is vastly inadequate to support our business plans and substantial additional funding will be needed in order to pursue those plans, which include research and development of our primary product candidate, seeking regulatory approval for that product candidate, and pursuing its commercialization in the U.S., Europe and other markets. Those circumstances raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

 

We will need substantial additional funding and may be unable to raise capital when needed, which would force us to delay, reduce or eliminate our product development programs or commercialization efforts and could cause our business to fail.

 

We are a development stage company with no commercial products. Our primary product candidate is in the process of being developed, and will require significant additional clinical development and additional investment before it could potentially be commercialized. We anticipate that none of our product candidates may be commercially available for several years, if at all.

 

We currently believe that proceeds we expect to receive from current funding commitments will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash requirements for the next 9 months; however, based on our current operating expenses and working capital requirements, we do not currently believe our existing cash resources are sufficient to meet our anticipated needs during the next twelve months. In addition to the funds raised or available pursuant to the Coldstream Financing, we will require additional financing to fund our planned future operations, including the continuation of our ongoing research and development efforts, seeking to license or acquire new assets, and researching and developing any potential patents, the related compounds and any further intellectual property that we may acquire. In addition, our plans may change and/or we may use our capital resources more rapidly than we currently anticipate. We presently expect that our expenses will increase in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly as we commence preclinical and clinical development for our lead product candidate, AC5, and that we will need to raise significant additional funds to continue operations. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:

 

the scope, progress and results of our research and preclinical development activities;

the scope, progress, results, costs, timing and outcomes of any clinical trials conducted for any of our product candidates;

the timing of entering into, and the terms of, any collaboration agreements with third parties relating to any of our product candidates;

the timing of and the costs involved in obtaining regulatory approvals for our product candidates;

the costs of operating, expanding and enhancing our operations to support our clinical activities and, if our product candidates are approved, commercialization activities;

the costs of maintaining, expanding and protecting our intellectual property portfolio, including potential litigation costs and liabilities;

operating revenues, if any, received from sales of our product candidates, if any are approved by the FDA or other applicable regulatory agencies;

the cost associated with being a public company, including obligations to regulatory agencies and investor relations; and

the costs of additional general and administrative personnel, including accounting and finance, legal and human resources employees.

 

As a result of these and other factors, we expect that we will need substantial additional funding in the future. We would likely seek such funding through public or private securities offerings, incurrence of indebtedness, or some combination. We may also seek funding through collaborative arrangements if we determine them to be necessary or appropriate. Additional funding may not be available when needed on acceptable terms, or at all. If we obtain capital through collaborative arrangements, these arrangements could require us to relinquish rights to our technology or product candidates and could result in our receipt of only a portion of the revenues associated with the partnered product. If we raise capital through the sale of equity, or securities convertible into equity, it would result in dilution to our then existing stockholders, which could be significant depending on the price at which we may be able to sell our securities. If we raise additional capital through the incurrence of indebtedness, we would likely become subject to covenants restricting our business activities, and holders of debt instruments may have rights and privileges senior to those of our equity investors. In addition, servicing the interest and principal repayment obligations under debt facilities could divert funds that would otherwise be available to support research and development, clinical or commercialization activities.

 

If we are unable to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis or on acceptable terms in the future, we would likely be required to delay, reduce or eliminate one or more of our product development activities, which could cause our business to fail.

 

18
 

 

Our short operating history may hinder our ability to successfully meet our objectives.

 

We are a development stage company subject to the risks, uncertainties and difficulties frequently encountered by early-stage companies in evolving markets. Our operations to date have been primarily limited to organizing and staffing, developing and securing its technology and undertaking or funding preclinical studies of its lead product candidate. We have not demonstrated our ability to successfully complete large-scale, pivotal clinical trials, obtain regulatory approvals, manufacture a commercial scale product or arrange for a third party to do so on its behalf, or conduct sales and marketing activities necessary for successful product commercialization.

 

Because of our limited operating history, we have limited insight into trends that may emerge and affect our business, and errors may be made in developing an approach to address those trends and the other challenges faced by development stage companies. Failure to adequately do so could cause our business, results of operations and financial condition to suffer or fail. Further, our limited operating history may make it difficult for our stockholders to make any predictions about our likelihood of future success or viability.

 

If we are not able to attract and retain qualified management and scientific personnel, we may fail to develop our technologies and product candidates.

 

Our future success depends to a significant degree on the skills, experience and efforts of the principal members of our scientific and management personnel. These members include Dr. Terrence Norchi, MD, our President and CEO. The loss of Dr. Norchi or any of our other key personnel could harm our business and might significantly delay or prevent the achievement of research, development or business objectives. Further, our operation as a public company will require that we attract additional personnel to support the establishment of appropriate financial reporting and internal controls systems. Competition for personnel is intense. We may not be able to attract, retain and/or successfully integrate qualified scientific, financial and other management personnel, which could materially harm our business.

 

If we fail to properly manage any growth we may experience, our business could be adversely affected.

 

We anticipate increasing the scale of our operations as we seek to develop our product candidates, including hiring and training additional personnel and establishing appropriate systems for a company with larger operations. The management of any growth we may experience will depend, among other things, upon our ability to develop and improve our operational, financial and management controls, reporting systems and procedures. If we are unable to manage any growth effectively, our operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

 

We have identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting which could, if not remediated, result in material misstatements in our financial statements.

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over our financial reporting, as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act. As disclosed in Item 4 of Part I of this report, management identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting as of June 30, 2013. A material weakness is defined as a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. As a result of these material weaknesses, our management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective based on criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organization of the Treadway Commission in Internal Control—Integrated Framework. We have developed a remediation plan that is designed to address these material weaknesses. If our remedial measures are insufficient to address the material weaknesses, or if additional material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in our internal control are discovered or occur in the future, our consolidated financial statements may contain material misstatements and we could be required to restate our financial results, which could lead to substantial additional costs for accounting and legal fees and litigation. In addition, even if we are successful in strengthening our controls and procedures, in the future those controls and procedures may not be adequate to prevent or identify irregularities or errors or to facilitate the fair presentation of our consolidated financial statements. If we fail to achieve and maintain the adequacy of our internal controls in accordance with applicable standards, we may be unable to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal controls over financial reporting. If we cannot produce reliable financial reports, our business and financial condition could be harmed, investors could lose confidence in our reported financial information, or the market price of our stock could decline significantly. Moreover, our reputation with lenders, investors, securities analysts and others may be adversely affected.

 

19
 

 

We may become involved in litigation and administrative proceedings that may materially affect us.

 

From time to time, we may become involved in various legal proceedings relating to matters incidental to the ordinary course of our business, including commercial, employment, class action, whistleblower and other litigation and claims, and governmental and other regulatory investigations and proceedings. Such matters can be time-consuming, divert management's attention and resources and cause us to incur significant expenses. Furthermore, because litigation is inherently unpredictable, there can be no assurance that the results of any of these actions will not have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.

 

Risks Related to the Development and Commercialization of our Product Candidates

 

Our current business plan is dependent on the success of one product candidate.

 

Our business is currently focused almost entirely on the development and commercialization of one product candidate, AC5. Our reliance on one primary product candidate means that, if we are not able to obtain regulatory approvals and market acceptance of that product, our chances for success will be significantly reduced. We are also less likely to withstand competitive pressures if any of our competitors develops and obtains regulatory approval or certification for a similar product faster than we can or that is otherwise more attractive to the market than AC5. Our current dependence on one product candidate increases the risk that our business will fail if our development efforts for that product candidate experience delays or other obstacles or are otherwise not successful.

 

The Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control (“CMC”) Process may be challenging.

 

Because of the complexity of the Company’s products, the CMC process may be difficult to complete successfully within the parameters required by the FDA. Failure to complete the CMC process successfully will severely limit our long-term viability.

 

Our principal product candidate is inherently risky because it is based on novel technologies.

 

We are subject to the risks of failure inherent in the development of products based on new technologies. The novel nature of AC5 creates significant challenges with respect to product development and optimization, manufacturing, government regulation and approval, third-party reimbursement and market acceptance. Our failure to overcome any one of those challenges could harm our operations and overall chances for success.

 

Compliance with governmental regulations regarding the treatment of animals used in research could increase our operating costs, which would adversely affect the commercialization of its technology.

 

The Animal Welfare Act, or AWA, is the federal law that covers the treatment of certain animals used in research. Currently, the AWA imposes a wide variety of specific regulations that govern the humane handling, care, treatment and transportation of certain animals by producers and users of research animals, most notably relating to personnel, facilities, sanitation, cage size, and feeding, watering and shipping conditions. Third parties with whom it contracts are subject to registration, inspections and reporting requirements. Furthermore, some states have their own regulations, including general anti- cruelty legislation, which establish certain standards in handling animals. Comparable rules, regulations, and or obligations exist in many foreign jurisdictions. If the Company or any of its contractors fails to comply with regulations concerning the treatment of animals used in research, it may be subject to fines and penalties and adverse publicity, and its operations could be adversely affected.

 

If the FDA or similar foreign agencies or intermediaries impose requirements or an alternative product classification more onerous than we anticipate, our business could be adversely affected.

 

The development plan for our initial product candidate is based on our anticipation of pursuing the medical device regulatory pathway. However, the FDA and other applicable foreign agencies will have authority to finally determine the regulatory route for our product candidates in their jurisdictions. If the FDA or similar foreign agencies or intermediaries deem our product to be a member of a category other than a medical device, such as a drug or biologic, or impose additional requirements on our pre-clinical and clinical development, financing needs would increase, the timeline for product approval would lengthen, the program complexity and resource requirements world increase, and the probability of successfully commercializing a product would decrease. Any or all of those circumstances would adversely affect our business.

 

20
 

 

If we are not able to secure and maintain relationships with third parties that are capable of conducting clinical trials on our product candidates, our product development efforts could be adversely impacted.

 

Our management has limited experience in conducting preclinical development activities and clinical trials. As a result, we will need to rely on research institutions and other third party clinical investigators to conduct our preclinical and clinical trials. If we are unable to reach agreement with qualified research institutions and clinical investigators on acceptable terms, or if any resulting agreement is terminated prior to the completion of our clinical trials, then our product development efforts could be materially delayed or otherwise harmed. Further, our reliance on third parties to conduct our clinical trials will provide us with less control over the timing and cost of those trials and the ability to recruit suitable subjects to participate in the trials. Moreover, the U.S FDA and other regulatory authorities require that we to comply with standards, commonly referred to as good clinical practices, or “GCP”, for conducting, recording and reporting the results of our preclinical development activities and our clinical trials, to assure that data and reported results are credible and accurate and that the rights, safety and confidentiality of trial participants are protected. Additionally, we and any third party contractor performing preclinical and clinical studies are subject to regulations governing the treatment of human and animal subjects in performing those studies. Our reliance on third parties that we do not control does not relieve us of those responsibilities and requirements. If those third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties, meet expected deadlines or conduct our preclinical development activities or clinical trials in accordance with regulatory requirements or stated protocols, we may not be able to obtain, or may be delayed in obtaining, regulatory approvals for our product candidates and will not be able to, or may be delayed in our efforts to, successfully commercialize our product candidates. Any of those circumstances would materially harm our business and prospects.

 

Any clinical trials that are conducted on our product candidates may fail.

 

Clinical trials are lengthy, complex and extremely expensive processes with uncertain expenditures and results and frequent failures. Any clinical trials that are commenced for one of our product candidates could be delayed, limited or fail for a number of reasons, including if:

 

the FDA or other regulatory authorities do not grant permission to proceed or places a trial on clinical hold due to safety concerns or other reasons;

sufficient suitable subjects do not enroll or remain in our trials;

we fail to produce necessary amounts of product candidate;

subjects experience an unacceptable rate of efficacy of the product candidate;

subjects experience an unacceptable rate or severity of adverse side effects, demonstrating a lack of safety of the product candidate;

any portion of the trial or related studies produces negative or inconclusive results or other adverse events;

reports from preclinical or clinical testing on similar technologies and products raise safety and/or efficacy concerns;

third-party clinical investigators lose their licenses or permits necessary to perform our clinical trials, do not perform their clinical trials on their anticipated schedule or consistent with the clinical trial protocol, GCP or regulatory requirements, or other third parties do not perform data collection and analysis in a timely or accurate manner;

inspections of clinical trial sites by the FDA or Institutional Review Boards (“IRBs”) or other applicable regulatory authorities find violations that require us to undertake corrective action, suspend or terminate one or more testing sites, or prohibit us from using some or all of the data in support of our marketing applications with the FDA or other applicable agencies;

manufacturing facilities of our third party manufacturers are ordered by the FDA or other government or regulatory authorities to temporarily or permanently shut down due to violations of cGMP or other applicable requirements;

third-party contractors become debarred or suspended or otherwise penalized by FDA or other government or regulatory authorities for violations of regulatory requirements;

the FDA or other regulatory authorities impose requirements on the design, structure or other features of the clinical trials for our product candidates that we and/or its third party contractors are unable to satisfy;

one or more IRBs refuses to approve, suspends or terminates a trial at an investigational site, precludes enrollment of additional subjects, or withdraws its approval of the trial;

the FDA or other regulatory authorities seek the advice of an advisory committee of physician and patient representatives that may view the risks of our product candidates as outweighing the benefits;

the FDA or other regulatory authorities require us to expand the size and scope of the clinical trials, which we may not be able to do; or

the FDA or other regulatory authorities impose prohibitive post-marketing restrictions on any of our product candidates that attains regulatory approval.

 

21
 

 

Any delay or failure of one or more of our clinical trials may occur at any stage of testing. Any such delay could cause our development costs to materially increase, and any such failure could significantly impair our business plans, which would materially harm our financial condition and operations.

 

We cannot market and sell any product candidate in the U.S. or in any other country or region if we fail to obtain the necessary regulatory approvals or certifications from applicable government agencies.

 

We cannot sell our product candidates in any country until regulatory agencies grant marketing approval or other required certifications. The process of obtaining such approval is lengthy, expensive and uncertain. If we are able to obtain such approvals for our lead product candidate or any other product candidate we may pursue, which we may never be able to do, it would likely be a process that takes many years to achieve.

 

To obtain marketing approvals in the U.S. for our product candidates, we must, among other requirements, complete carefully controlled and well-designed clinical trials sufficient to demonstrate to the FDA that the product candidate is safe and effective for each indication for which we seek approval. As described above, many factors could cause those trials to be delayed or to fail.

 

We believe that the pathway to marketing approval in the U.S. for our lead product candidate will likely require the FDA’s approval of a PMA for the product, which likely will be classified as a Class III medical device and is based on novel technologies. This approval pathway can be lengthy and expensive, and is estimated to take from one to three years or longer from the time the PMA application is submitted to the FDA until an approval is obtained, if an approval can be obtained at all.

 

Similarly, to obtain approval to market our product candidates outside of the U.S., we will need to submit clinical data concerning our product candidates to and receive marketing approval or other required certifications from governmental agencies in those countries, which in certain countries includes approval of the price we intend to charge for a product. For instance, in order to obtain the certification needed to market our lead product candidate in the EU, we believe that we will need to obtain a CE mark for the product, which entails scrutiny by applicable regulatory agencies and bears some similarity to the PMA process, as well as completion of at least one successful clinical trial.

 

We may encounter delays or rejections if changes occur in regulatory agency policies, if difficulties arise within regulatory or related agencies such as, for instance, any delays in their review time, or if reports from preclinical and clinical testing on similar technology or products raise safety and/or efficacy concerns during the period in which we develop a product candidate or during the period required for review of any application for marketing approval or certification.

 

Any difficulties we encounter during the approval or certification process for any of our product candidates would have a substantial adverse impact on our operations and financial condition and could cause our business to fail.

 

Any product for which we obtain required regulatory approvals could be subject to post-approval regulation, and we may be subject to penalties if we fail to comply with such post-approval requirements.

 

Any product for which we are able to obtain marketing approval or other required certifications, along with approval of the manufacturing processes, post-approval clinical data, labeling, advertising and promotional activities for such product, will be subject to continual requirements of and review by the FDA and comparable foreign regulatory authorities, including through periodic inspections. These requirements include, without limitation, submissions of safety and other post-marketing information and reports, registration requirements, cGMP requirements relating to quality control, quality assurance and corresponding maintenance of records and documents. Maintaining compliance with any such regulations that may be applicable to us in the future would require significant time, attention and expense. Even if marketing approval of a product is granted, the approval may be subject to limitations on the indicated uses for which the product may be marketed or other conditions of approval, or may contain requirements for costly and time consuming post-marketing approval testing and surveillance to monitor the safety or efficacy of the product. Discovery after approval of previously unknown problems with any approved product candidate or related manufacturing processes, or failure to comply with regulatory requirements, may result in consequences to us such as:

 

22
 

 

restrictions on the marketing or distribution of a product, including refusals to permit the import or export of products;

warning letters or untitled letters;

warning labels on the products;

withdrawal or recall of the products from the market;

refusal by the FDA or other regulatory agencies to approve pending applications or supplements to approved applications that we may submit;

suspension of any ongoing clinical trials;

fines, restitution or disgorgement of profits or revenue;

suspension or withdrawal of marketing approvals or certifications; or

civil or criminal penalties.

 

The occurrence of any such consequences if any of our product candidates achieves required regulatory marketing approvals or certifications in the future would materially adversely affect our business and operations.

 

Current or future legislation may make it more difficult and costly for us to obtain marketing approval or other certifications of our product candidates.

 

In 2007, the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 (the “FDAAA”) was adopted. This legislation grants significant powers to the FDA, many of which are aimed at assuring the safety of medical products after approval. For example, the FDAAA grants the FDA authority to impose post-approval clinical study requirements, require safety-related changes to product labeling and require the adoption of complex risk management plans. Pursuant to the FDAAA, the FDA may require that a new product be used only by physicians with specialized training, only in specified designated health care settings, or only in conjunction with special patient testing and monitoring. The legislation also included requirements for disclosing clinical study results to the public through a clinical study registry, and renewed requirements for conducting clinical studies to generate information on the use of products in pediatric patients. Under the FDAAA, companies that violate these laws are subject to substantial civil monetary penalties. The requirements and changes imposed by the FDAAA, or any other new legislation, regulations or policies that grant the FDA or other regulatory agencies additional authority that further complicates the process for obtaining marketing approval and/or further restricts or regulates post-marketing approval activities, could make it more difficult and more costly for us to obtain and maintain approval of any of our product candidates.

 

Public perception of ethical and social issues may limit or discourage the type of research we conduct.

 

Our clinical trials will involve human subjects, and we and third parties with whom we contract also do research involving animal subjects. Governmental authorities could, for public health or other purposes, limit the use of human or animal research or prohibit the practice of our technology. Further, ethical and other concerns about our or our third party contractors’ methods, particularly the use of human subjects in clinical trials or the use of animal testing, could delay our research and preclinical and clinical trials, which would adversely affect our business and financial condition.

 

Use of third parties to manufacture our product candidates may increase the risk that clinical development and potential commercialization of our product candidates could be delayed, prevented or impaired.

 

We have limited personnel with experience in medical device development and manufacturing, do not own or operate manufacturing facilities, and generally lack the resources and the capabilities to manufacture any of our product candidates on a clinical or commercial scale. We currently intend to outsource all or most of the manufacturing and packaging of our preclinical and clinical product candidates and products to third parties. However, we do not currently have agreements with any third party manufacturers for the supply of any of our product candidates. There are a limited number of manufacturers that operate under cGMP regulations and that are capable of and willing to manufacture our product candidates utilizing the manufacturing methods that are required to produce our lead product candidate, and our product candidates will compete with other product candidates for access to qualified manufacturing facilities. In the near term, if we have difficulty locating third party manufacturers to develop our product candidates for clinical work, then our product development programs will experience delays and otherwise suffer. We may also be unable to enter into agreements for the commercial supply of products with third party manufacturers in the future, or may be unable to do so when needed or on acceptable terms. Any such results could materially harm our business.

 

23
 

 

Reliance on third party manufacturers entails risks to our business, including:

 

the failure of the third party to maintain regulatory compliance, quality assurance, and general expertise in advanced manufacturing techniques and processes that may be necessary for the manufacture of our product candidates;

limitations on supply availability resulting from capacity and scheduling constraints of the third parties;

failure of the third party manufacturers to meet the demand for the product candidate, either from future customers or for clinical trial needs;

the possible breach of the manufacturing agreement by the third party; and

the possible termination or non-renewal of the agreement by the third party at a time that is costly or inconvenient for us.

 

The failure of any of our contract manufacturers to maintain high manufacturing standards could result in harm to clinical trial participants or patients using products. Such failure could also result in product liability claims, product recalls, product seizures or withdrawals, delays or failures in testing or delivery, cost overruns or other problems that could seriously harm our business or profitability. Further, our contract manufacturers will be required to adhere to FDA and other applicable regulations relating to manufacturing practices. Those regulations cover all aspects of the manufacturing, testing, quality control and recordkeeping relating to our product candidates and any products that we may commercialize in the future. The failure of our third party manufacturers to comply with applicable regulations could result in sanctions being imposed on us, including fines, injunctions, civil penalties, failure of regulatory authorities to grant marketing approval or other required certifications of our product candidates, delays, suspension or withdrawal of approvals, license revocation, seizures or recalls of product candidates or products, operating restrictions and criminal prosecutions, any of which could significantly and adversely affect our business, financial condition and operations.

 

Materials necessary to manufacture our product candidates may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, which may delay or otherwise hinder the development and commercialization of those product candidates.

 

We will rely on the manufacturers of our product candidates to purchase from third party suppliers the materials necessary to produce the compounds for preclinical and clinical studies, and may rely on those other manufacturers for commercial distribution if we obtain marketing approval or other required certifications for any of our product candidates. The materials to produce our products may not be available when needed or on commercially reasonable terms, and the prices for such materials may be susceptible to fluctuations. We do not have any control over the process or timing of the acquisition of these materials by our manufacturers. Moreover, we currently do not have any agreements for the commercial production of any of these materials. If these materials cannot be obtained for our preclinical and clinical studies, product testing and potential regulatory approval of our product candidates would be delayed, which would significantly impact our ability to develop our product candidates and materially adversely affect our ability to meet our objectives and obtain operations success.

 

We may not be successful in maintaining or establishing collaborations, which could adversely affect our ability to develop and, if required regulatory approvals are obtained, commercialize, our product candidates.

 

We intend to collaborate with physicians, patient advocacy groups, foundations and government agencies to assist with the development of our product candidates. If required regulatory approvals are obtained for any of our product candidates, then we may consider entering into selective collaboration arrangements with medical technology, pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies and/or seek to establish strategic partnerships with marketing partners for the development, sale, marketing and/or distribution of our products within or outside of the U.S. If we elect to seek collaborators in the future but are unable to reach agreements with suitable collaborators, then we may fail to meet our business objectives for the affected product or program. Moreover, collaboration arrangements are complex and time consuming to negotiate, document and implement, and we may not be successful in our efforts, if any, to establish and implement collaborations or other alternative arrangements. The terms of any collaborations or other arrangements that we establish may not be favorable to us, and the success of any such collaborations will depend heavily on the efforts and activities of our collaborators. Any failure to engage successful collaborators could cause delays in our product development and/or commercialization efforts, which could harm our financial condition and operational results.

 

We compete with other pharmaceutical and medical device companies, including companies that may develop products that make our product candidates less attractive or obsolete.

 

The medical device, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are highly competitive. If our product candidates become available for commercial sale, we will compete in that competitive marketplace. There are several products on the market or in development that could be competitors with our lead current product candidate. While our management, which is familiar with these other products, believes that our lead product candidate could be safer and possibly more effective than those competitors, those beliefs may turn out to be wrong. Further, most of our competitors have greater resources or capabilities and greater experience in the development, approval and commercialization of medical devices or other products than we do. We may not be able to compete successfully against them. We also compete for funding with other companies in our industry that are focused on discovering and developing novel improvements in surgical bleeding prevention.

 

24
 

 

We anticipate that competition in our industry will increase. In addition, the healthcare industry is characterized by rapid technological change, resulting in new product introductions and other technological advancements. Our competitors may develop and market products that render our lead product candidate or any future product non-competitive or otherwise obsolete. Any such circumstances could cause our operations to suffer.

 

If we fail to generate market acceptance of our product candidates and establish programs to educate and train surgeons as to the distinctive characteristics of our product candidates, we will not be able to generate revenues on those product candidates.

 

Acceptance in the marketplace of our lead product candidate depends in part on our and our third party contractors’ ability to establish programs for the training of surgeons in the proper usage of that product candidate, which will require significant expenditure of resources. Convincing surgeons to dedicate the time and energy necessary to properly train to use new products and techniques is challenging, and we may not be successful in those efforts. If surgeons are not properly trained, they may ineffectively use our product candidates. Such misuse could result in unsatisfactory patient outcomes, patient injury, negative publicity or lawsuits against us. Accordingly, even if our product candidates are superior to alternative treatments, our success will depend on our ability to gain and maintain market acceptance for those product candidates among certain select groups of the population that will use those products. If we fail to do so, we will not be able to generate revenue from product sales and our business, financial condition and results of operations will be adversely affected.

 

We face uncertainty related to pricing, reimbursement and healthcare reform, which could reduce our potential revenues.

 

If our product candidates are approved for commercialization, any sales will depend in part on the availability of coverage and reimbursement from third-party payors such as government insurance programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, private health insurers, health maintenance organizations and other healthcare related organizations. If our product candidates are approved for commercialization, pricing and reimbursement may be uncertain. Both the federal and state governments in the U.S. and foreign governments continue to propose and pass new legislation affecting coverage and reimbursement policies, which are designed to contain or reduce the cost of healthcare. Further, federal, state and foreign healthcare proposals and reforms could limit the prices that can be charged for the product candidates that we may develop and may further limit our commercial opportunity. Adoption of our product candidates by the medical community may be limited if doctors and hospitals do not receive adequate partial or full reimbursement for use of our products, if any are commercialized. In some foreign jurisdictions, marketing approval or allowance could be dependent upon pre-marketing price negotiations. As a result, any denial of private or government payor coverage or inadequate reimbursement for procedures performed using our products, before or upon commercialization, could harm our business and reduce our prospects for generating revenue.

 

In addition, the U.S. Congress recently adopted legislation regarding health insurance. As a result of this new legislation, substantial changes could be made to the current system for paying for healthcare in the U.S., including modifications to the existing system of private payors and government programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program, creation of a government-sponsored healthcare insurance source, or some combination of those, as well as other changes. Restructuring the coverage of medical care in the U.S. could impact the reimbursement for medical devices such as our product candidates. If reimbursement for our approved product candidates, if any, is substantially less than we expect, or rebate obligations associated with them are substantially increased, our business could be materially and adversely impacted.

 

The use of our product candidates in human subjects may expose us to product liability claims, and we may not be able to obtain adequate insurance or otherwise defend against any such claims.

 

We face an inherent risk of product liability claims and do not currently have product liability insurance coverage. We will need to obtain insurance coverage if and when we begin clinical trials and commercialization of any of our product candidates. We may not be able to obtain or maintain product liability insurance on acceptable terms with adequate coverage. If claims against us exceed any applicable insurance coverage we may obtain, then our business could be adversely impacted. Regardless of whether we would be ultimately successful in any product liability litigation, such litigation could consume substantial amounts of our financial and managerial resources, which could significantly harm our business.

 

Risks Related to our Intellectual Property

 

If we are unable to obtain and maintain protection for our intellectual property rights, the value of our technology and products will be adversely affected.

 

Our success will depend in large part on our ability to obtain and maintain protection in the U.S. and other countries for the intellectual property rights covering or incorporated into our technology and products. The patent situation in the field of medical devices generally is highly uncertain and involves complex legal, technical, scientific and factual questions. We may not be able to obtain and maintain patent protection relating to our technology or products. Even if issued, patents issued or licensed to us may be challenged, narrowed, invalidated, held to be unenforceable or circumvented, or determined not to cover our product candidates or our competitors’ products, which could limit our ability to stop competitors from marketing identical or similar products. Further, we cannot be certain that we were the first to make the inventions claimed in the patents we own or license, or that protection of the inventions set forth in those patents was the first to be filed in the U.S. Third parties that have filed patents or patent applications covering similar technologies or processes may challenge our claim of sole right to use the intellectual property rights covered by the patents we own or exclusively license. Moreover, changes in applicable intellectual property laws or interpretations thereof in the U.S. and other countries may diminish the value of our intellectual property rights or narrow the scope of our patent protection. Any failure to obtain or maintain adequate protection for the intellectual property rights we use would materially harm our business, product development programs and prospects.

 

25
 

 

In addition, our proprietary information, trade secrets and know-how are important components of our intellectual property rights. We seek to protect our proprietary information, trade secrets, know-how and confidential information, in part, with confidentiality agreements with our employees, corporate partners, outside scientific collaborators, sponsored researchers, consultants and other advisors. We also have confidentiality and invention or patent assignment agreements with our employees and certain consultants and advisors. If our employees or consultants breach those agreements, we may not have adequate remedies for any of those breaches. In addition, our proprietary information, trade secrets and know-how may otherwise become known to or be independently developed by others. Enforcing a claim that a party illegally obtained and is using our proprietary information, trade secrets and know-how is difficult, expensive and time consuming, and the outcome is unpredictable. In addition, courts outside the U.S. may be less willing to protect trade secrets. Costly and time consuming litigation could be necessary to seek to enforce and determine the scope of our intellectual property rights, and failure to obtain or maintain protection thereof could adversely affect our competitive business position and results of operations.

 

If we lose certain intellectual property rights owned by third parties and licensed to us, our business could be materially harmed.

 

We have entered into certain in-license agreements with MIT and with certain other third parties, and may seek to enter into additional in-license agreements relating to other intellectual property rights in the future. To the extent we and our product candidates rely heavily on any such in-licensed intellectual property, we are subject to our and the counterparty’s compliance with the terms of such agreements in order to maintain those rights. Presently, we, our lead product candidate and our business plans are dependent on the patent and other intellectual property rights that are licensed to us under our license agreement with MIT. Although that agreement has a durational term through the life of the licensed patents, it also imposes certain diligence, capital raising, and other obligations on us, our breach of which could permit the counterparty to terminate the agreement. Further, we are responsible for all patent prosecution and maintenance fees under that agreement, and a failure to pay such fees on a timely basis could also entitle the counterparty to terminate the agreement. Any failure by us to satisfy our obligations under our license agreement with MIT or any other dispute or other issue relating to that agreement could cause us to lose some or all of our rights to use certain intellectual property that is material to our business and our lead product candidate, which would materially harm our product development efforts and could cause our business to fail.

 

If we infringe or are alleged to infringe the intellectual property rights of third parties, our business and financial condition could suffer.

 

Our research, development and commercialization activities, as well as any product candidates or products resulting from those activities, may infringe or be accused of infringing a patent or other intellectual property under which we do not hold a license or other rights. Third parties may own or control those patents or other rights in the U.S. or abroad. The third parties that own or control those intellectual property rights could bring claims against us that would cause us to incur substantial time, expense, and diversion of management attention. If a patent or other intellectual property infringement suit were brought against us, we could be forced to stop or delay research, development, manufacturing or sales, if any, of the applicable product or product candidate that is the subject of the suit. In order to avoid or settle potential claims with respect to any of the patent or other intellectual property rights of third parties, we may choose or be required to seek a license from a third party and be required to pay license fees or royalties or both. Any such license may not be available on acceptable terms, or at all. Even if we or our future collaborators were able to obtain a license, the rights granted to us could be non-exclusive, which could result in our competitors gaining access to the same intellectual property rights and materially negatively affecting the commercialization potential of our planned products. Ultimately, we could be prevented from commercializing one or more product candidates, or be forced to cease some aspects of our business operations, if, as a result of actual or threatened infringement claims, we are unable to enter into licenses on acceptable terms or at all or otherwise settle such claims. Further, if any such claims were successful against us, we could be forced to pay substantial damages. Any of those results could significantly harm our business, prospects and operations.

 

26
 

 

Risks Related to the Merger and our Common Stock

 

The Company may have material liabilities that were not discovered before the closing of the Merger.

 

The Company may have material liabilities that were not discovered before the consummation of the Merger. We could experience losses as a result of any such undisclosed liabilities that are discovered following the Merger, which could materially harm our business and financial condition. Although the Merger Agreement contained customary representations and warranties from the Company concerning its assets, liabilities, financial condition and affairs, there may be limited or no recourse against the Company’s prior owners or principals in the event those prove to be untrue. As a result, the stockholders of the Company bear risks relating to any such unknown or undisclosed liabilities.

 

Certain of our directors and officers own a significant percentage of our capital stock as a result of the Merger and are able to exercise significant influence over the Company.

 

Certain of our executive officers and directors own a significant percentage of our outstanding capital stock following the closing of the Merger. Dr. Terrence W. Norchi, our President, Chief Executive Officer and a director, and Dr. Avtar Dhillon, the Chairman of our Board of Directors, collectively hold or control over 25% of our outstanding shares of common stock. Accordingly, these members of our Board of Directors and management team have substantial voting power to approve matters requiring stockholder approval, including without limitation the election of directors in the future, and have significant influence over our affairs. This concentration of ownership could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control of the Company after the Merger.

 

There is not now, and there may not ever be, an active market for our common stock, which trades in the over-the-counter market in low volumes and at volatile prices.

 

There currently is a limited market for our common stock. Although our common stock is quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board (“OTCBB”), an over-the-counter quotation system, trading of our common stock is extremely limited and sporadic and generally at very low volumes. Further, the price at which our common stock may trade is volatile and we expect that it will continue to fluctuate significantly in response to various factors, many of which are beyond our control. The stock market in general, and securities of small-cap companies driven by novel technologies in particular, has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations in recent years. Continued market fluctuations could result in further volatility in the price at which our common stock may trade, which could cause its value to decline. To the extent we seek to raise capital in the future through the issuance of equity, those efforts could be limited or hindered by low and/or volatile market prices for our common stock.

 

We do not now, and are not expected to in the foreseeable future, meet the initial listing standards of the Nasdaq Stock Market or any other national securities exchange. We presently anticipate that our common stock will continue to be quoted on the OTCBB or another over-the-counter quotation system. In those venues, our stockholders may find it difficult to obtain accurate quotations as to the market value of their shares of our common stock, and may find few buyers to purchase their stock and few market makers to support its price.

 

A more active market for our common stock may never develop. As a result, investors must bear the economic risk of holding their shares of our common stock for an indefinite period of time.

 

Our common stock is a “penny stock.”

 

The SEC has adopted regulations that generally define “penny stock” as an equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to specific exemptions. The market price of our common stock is, and is expected to continue to be in the near term, less than $5.00 per share and is therefore a “penny stock.” Brokers and dealers effecting transactions in “penny stock” must disclose certain information concerning the transaction, obtain a written agreement from the purchaser and determine that the purchaser is reasonably suitable to purchase the securities. Those rules may restrict the ability of brokers or dealers to sell our common stock and may affect the ability of our stockholders to sell their shares of our common stock. In addition, if our common stock continues to be quoted on the OTCBB as we expect, then our stockholders may find it difficult to obtain accurate quotations for our stock, and may find few buyers to purchase our stock and few market makers to support its price.

 

If we issue additional shares in the future, our existing shareholders will be diluted.

 

Our articles of incorporation authorize the issuance of up to 300,000,000 shares of common stock. In addition to capital raising activities, other possible business and financial uses for our authorized common stock include, without limitation, future stock splits, acquiring other companies, businesses or products in exchange for shares of common stock, issuing shares of our common stock to partners in connection with strategic alliances, attracting and retaining employees by the issuance of additional securities under our various equity compensation plans, or other transactions and corporate purposes that our Board of Directors deems are in the Company’s best interest. Additionally, shares of common stock could be used for anti-takeover purposes or to delay or prevent changes in control or management of the Company. We cannot provide assurances that any issuances of common stock will be consummated on favorable terms or at all, that they will enhance stockholder value, or that they will not adversely affect our business or the trading price of our common stock . The issuance of any such shares will reduce the book value per share and may contribute to a reduction in the market price of the outstanding shares of our common stock. If we issue any such additional shares, such issuance will reduce the proportionate ownership and voting power of all current shareholders. Further, such issuance may result in a change of control of our corporation.

 

27
 

 

FINRA sales practice requirements may limit a stockholder’s ability to buy and sell our stock.

 

In addition to the “penny stock” rules described above, FINRA has adopted rules that require that, in recommending an investment to a customer, a broker-dealer must have reasonable grounds for believing that the investment is suitable for that customer. Prior to recommending speculative low priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer’s financial status, tax status, investment objectives and other information. Under interpretations of these rules, FINRA has indicated its belief that there is a high probability that speculative low priced securities will not be suitable for at least some customers. These FINRA requirements make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that at least some of their customers buy our common stock, which may limit the ability of our stockholders to buy and sell our common stock and could have an adverse effect on the market for our shares.

 

There may be additional risks because we recently completed a reverse merger transaction.

 

Additional risks may exist because we recently completed a “reverse merger” transaction. Securities analysts of major brokerage firms may not provide coverage of the Company following the Merger because there may be little incentive to brokerage firms to recommend the purchase of our common stock. There may also be increased scrutiny by the SEC and other government agencies and holders of our securities due to the nature of the transaction, as there has been increased focus on transactions such as the Merger in recent years. Further, since the Company existed as a “shell company” under applicable rules of the SEC up until the closing of the Merger on June 26, 2013, there will be certain restrictions and limitations on the Company going forward relating to any potential future issuances of additional securities to raise funding and compliance with applicable SEC rules and regulations.

 

The elimination of monetary liability against our directors and officers under Nevada law and the existence of indemnification rights held by our directors, officers and employees may result in substantial expenditures by the Company and may discourage lawsuits against our directors, officers and employees.

 

Our Articles of Incorporation eliminates the personal liability of our directors and officers to our Company and our stockholders for damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director or officer to the extent permissible under Nevada law. Further, our amended and restated bylaws provide that we are obligated to indemnify any of our directors or officers to the fullest extent authorized by the Nevada law and, subject to certain conditions, advance the expenses incurred by any director or officer or director in defending any action, suit or proceeding prior to its final disposition. Those indemnification obligations could result in the Company incurring substantial expenditures to cover the cost of settlement or damage awards against our directors or officers, which we may be unable to recoup. These provisions and resultant costs may also discourage us from bringing a lawsuit against any of our current or former directors or officers for breaches of their fiduciary duties, and may similarly discourage the filing of derivative litigation by our stockholders against our directors and officers even though such actions, if successful, might otherwise benefit us or our stockholders.

 

We are subject to the reporting requirements of federal securities laws, compliance with which involves significant time, expense and expertise.

 

We are a public reporting company in the U.S., and, accordingly, are subject to the information and reporting requirements of the Exchange Act and other federal securities laws, including the obligations imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The costs associated with preparing and filing annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC in the ordinary course, as well as preparing and filing audited financial statements, will cause our operational expenses to be higher especially considering that we have significantly increased our operating activities as a result of the Merger and the change of our business plan.

 

Our present management team, which consists of ABS’s former management team, has only limited publicly-traded company experience. It will be time consuming, difficult and costly for our management team to acquire additional expertise and experience in operating a public company, and to develop and implement the internal controls and reporting procedures required by Sarbanes-Oxley and other applicable securities laws. We will need to hire additional financial reporting, internal controls and other finance staff in order to completely develop and implement appropriate internal controls and reporting procedures as required by applicable securities regulations for public companies, which we may not be able to do on a timely basis or at all.

 

Shares of our common stock that have not been registered under federal securities laws, regardless of whether such shares are restricted or unrestricted, are subject to resale restrictions imposed by Rule 144, including those set forth in Rule 144(i) which apply to a “shell company.” In addition, any shares of our common stock that are held by affiliates, including any received in a registered offering, will be subject to the resale restrictions of Rule 144(i).

 

28
 

 

Pursuant to Rule 144 (“Rule 144”) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), a “shell company” is defined as a company that has no or nominal operations and either no or nominal assets; assets consisting solely of cash and cash equivalents; or assets consisting of any amount of cash and cash equivalents and nominal other assets. As such, we may be deemed a “shell company” pursuant to Rule 144 prior to the closing of the Merger, and as such, sales of our securities pursuant to Rule 144 are not permitted until a period of at least 12 months has elapsed from June 26, 2013, the date on which our Current Report on Form 8-K, reflecting our status as a non-“shell company”, was filed with the SEC. Therefore, any restricted securities we sell in the future or issue to consultants or employees in consideration for services rendered or for any other purpose will have no liquidity until and unless such securities are registered under the Securities Act and/or until June 26, 2014, provided that we and the selling stockholder are in compliance with the other requirements of Rule 144. As a result, it will be more difficult for us to raise funding to support our operations through the sale of debt or equity securities unless we agree to register such securities under the Securities Act, which could cause us to expend additional time and cash resources. Further, it may be more difficult for us to compensate our employees and consultants with our securities instead of cash. Our previous status as a “shell company” could also limit our use of our securities to pay for any acquisitions we may seek to pursue in the future (although none are currently planned), which could cause the value of our securities, if any, to decline in value or become worthless. In addition, any shares held by affiliates, including shares received in any registered offering, will be subject to the resale restrictions of Rule 144(i).

 

We do not intend to pay cash dividends on our capital stock in the foreseeable future.

 

We have never declared or paid any dividends on our shares and do not anticipate paying any such dividends in the foreseeable future. Any future payment of cash dividends would depend on our financial condition, contractual restrictions, solvency tests imposed by applicable corporate laws, results of operations, anticipated cash requirements and other factors and will be at the discretion of the our Board of Directors. Our stockholders should not expect that we will ever pay cash or other dividends on our outstanding capital stock.

 

We are at risk of securities class action litigation that could result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources.

 

In the past, securities class action litigation has been brought against companies following periods of volatility of its securities in the market place, particularly following a company’s initial public offering. Due to the volatility of our stock price, we could be the target of securities litigation in the future. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources.

 

29
 

 

 

Item 2.—Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

 

On July 1, 2013, we issued and sold units consisting of 500,000 shares of our common stock and warrant to purchase 500,000 shares of our common stock in the Coldstream Financing to a foreign accredited investor identified by Coldstream, for aggregate gross proceeds of $250,000, and pursuant to a Securities Purchase Agreement and warrant in substantially the same forms that were executed previously in connection with the Coldstream Financing. The issuance of securities in the Coldstream Financing has not been registered under the Securities Act, and such securities have been issued in reliance upon an exemption from registration under Section 4(2) of the Securities Act and Regulation S promulgated thereunder. Such securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration under or exemption from the Securities Act and any applicable state securities laws. In determining that the issuance of such securities qualifies for an exemption under Section 4(2) of the Securities Act and Regulation S promulgated thereunder, we have relied on the following facts: the recipients of the securities represented that they are not a “U.S. Person” as defined in as defined in Rule 902 promulgated under the Securities Act and are “accredited investors” as defined in Rule 501 under the Securities Act; and the securities were issued as restricted securities

 

Item 5. Other Information

 

Concurrently with the closing of the Merger, effective, June 24, 2013, we amended and restated our bylaws. Our restated bylaws include changes to the procedures by which our stockholders may recommend nominees to our Board of Directors.

 

Director candidates are considered based upon various criteria, including without limitation their broad-based business and professional skills and experiences, their knowledge of the industry in which we operate and ability to add perspectives relating to that industry, concern for the long-term interests of our stockholders, diversity, and personal integrity and judgment. In addition, directors must have time available to devote to the activities of our Board of Directors and to understand and enhance their knowledge of our industry and business plans. Our Board of Directors has a critical role in guiding our strategic direction and overseeing the management of the Company, and accordingly we seek to attract and retain highly qualified directors who have sufficient time to attend to their substantial duties and responsibilities as a director of the Company.

 

In carrying out its responsibilities, our Board of Directors will consider director candidates suggested by stockholders. If a stockholder wishes to formally place a director candidate’s name in nomination, then he or she must do so in accordance with the provisions of our amended and restated bylaws, which provide certain advance notice and other requirements in order for our stockholders to nominate a director candidate. Proposed nominations of director candidates must be timely sent to the Secretary of the Company, c/o Arch Therapeutics, Inc., One Broadway, 14th Floor, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142. To be timely, notice of a proposed director nominee must be delivered to or mailed and received at the Company’s address set forth above not less than 90 days prior to the date of the meeting at which the proposed director nominee would be up for election. Further, the stockholder’s notice relating to a director nomination must set forth the following information about each person whom the stockholder proposes to nominate for election or re-election as a director: (i) the name, age, business address and residence address of the person, (ii) the principal occupation or employment of the person, (iii) the class and number of shares of our common stock that are beneficially owned by the person, and (iv) any other information relating to the person that is required to be disclosed in solicitations for proxies for election of directors pursuant to Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act. Further, the stockholder must also provide the following information about itself and certain of persons associated with, controlling, controlled by or acting on concert with the stockholder: (i) the name and record address of the stockholder, (ii) the class and number of shares of our common stock which are beneficially owned by the stockholder; and (iii) certain information specified in our amended and restated bylaws regarding any hedge transactions entered into, derivative instruments beneficially owned by, or rights to dividends on the shares of our common stock beneficially owned by such persons. Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated bylaws, the Company may also require any proposed nominee to furnish such other information as may reasonably be required by the Corporation to determine the eligibility of such proposed nominee to serve as a director on our Board of Directors.

 

 

30
 

 

Item 6. Exhibits

 

Exhibit   Description
2.1   Agreement and Plan of Merger dated May 10, 2013, by and among Almah, Inc., Arch Acquisition Corporation, and Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on May 13, 2013)
3.1   Articles of Incorporation of Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed by the Company with the SEC on January 5, 2012)
3.2   Certificate of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 5, 2013)
3.3   Amended and Restated Bylaws of Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 24, 2013)
10.1   Binding Letter of Intent by and between Almah, Inc. and Arch Therapeutics, Inc. dated April 19, 2013 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on April 25, 2013)
10.2   Promissory Note by and between Almah, Inc. and Arch Therapeutics, Inc. dated April 19, 2013 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on April 25, 2013)
10.3   Financing Agreement by and between Almah, Inc. and Coldstream Summit Ltd. dated April 19, 2013 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on April 25, 2013)
10.4   Form of Securities Purchase Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on April 25, 2013)
10.5   Form of Warrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on April 25, 2013)
10.6   Amended and Restated Exclusive Patent License Agreement dated May 23, 2011 between ABS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as amended by the First Amendment to Amended and Restated Exclusive Patent License Agreement dated May 15, 2012 between ABS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and further amended by the Second Amendment to Amended and Restated Exclusive Patent License Agreement dated February 1, 2013 between ABS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as further amended by the Third Amendment to Amended and Restated Exclusive Patent License Agreement dated April 30, 2013 between ABS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and as further amended by the Letter Agreement dated June 10, 2013 between ABS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 26, 2013)
10.7   Termination Agreement and Release dated June 25, 2013, between ABS and Terrence W. Norchi (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 26, 2013)
10.8   Executive Employment Agreement dated June 26, 2013 between Arch Therapeutics, Inc. and Terrence W. Norchi (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.8 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 26, 2013)
10.9   Executive Employment Agreement dated June 26, 2013 between Arch Therapeutics, Inc. and Alan T. Barber (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 26, 2013)
10.10   Executive Employment Agreement, effective July 8, 2013, by and between Arch Therapeutics, Inc. and William M. Cotter (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on July 8, 2013)
10.11*   Amendment No. 1 to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated May 23, 2013, by and among Almah, Inc., Arch Acquisition Corporation, and Arch Therapeutics, Inc.
10.12   Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on June 24, 2013)
10.13*   Form of Stock Option Award Agreement under Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan
10.14*   Form of Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement under Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan
10.15*   Form of Restricted Stock Bonus Award Agreement under Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan
31.1*   Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or 15d-14(a) under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934
31.2*   Certification of Principal Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or 15d-14(a) under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934
32.1*   Certification pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, executed by Terrence W. Norchi, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Alan T. Barber, Chief Financial Officer
101.INS*^   XBRL Instance Document
101.SCH*^   XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
101.CAL*^   XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
101.DEF*^   XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
101.LAB*^   XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document
101.PRE*^   XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document

 


* Filed herewith.

^ In accordance with Rule 406T of Regulation S-T, the information in these exhibits shall not be deemed to be “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to liability under that section, and shall not be incorporated by reference into any registration statement or other document filed under the Securities Act of 1933, except as expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.

 

31
 

 

SIGNATURE

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

 

  ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.
   
   
Date: August 14, 2013 By: /s/ TERRENCE W. NORCHI
    Terrence W. Norchi
   

President and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer)

 

 

 

 

Date: August 14, 2013 By: /s/ ALAN T. BARBER
    Alan T. Barber
   

Chief Financial Officer

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

 

32

 

 

Amendment No. 1 to Agreement and Plan of Merger

 

This Amendment No. 1 to Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “ Amendment ”) is made as of May 23, 2013 by and among ALMAH, INC., a Nevada corporation (“ Parent ”), ARCH Acquisition Corporation , a Massachusetts corporation (“ Acquisition Corp. ”) and ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC., a Massachusetts corporation (the “ Company ”).

 

Recitals

 

Whereas , Parent, Acquisition Corp. and the Company are parties to that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated May 10, 2013 (the “ Merger Agreement ”), pursuant to which Acquisition Corp. will merge with and into the Company, and the Company will become a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of Parent;

 

Whereas , Section 10.15 of the Merger Agreement provides, in relevant part, that the Merger Agreement may be amended solely by a writing executed and delivered by each of the parties thereto; and

 

WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 10.15 of the Merger Agreement, the parties hereto hereby desire to amend certain provisions of the Merger Agreement as set forth in in this Amendment.

 

Now, Therefore , for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, and in consideration of the foregoing recitals and the mutual promises and covenants set forth herein, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

1.1 Definitions; Construction . Capitalized terms used and not otherwise defined in this Amendment shall have the meanings given to them in the Merger Agreement. References in the Merger Agreement (including references to the Merger Agreement as amended and modified) to the “Agreement” (and indirect references such as “hereunder”, “hereby”, “herein” and “hereof”) shall be deemed to refer to the Merger Agreement as amended and modified by this Amendment.

 

1.2 Amendment . Section 7.01(h) of the Merger Agreement is hereby amended and restated to read in full as follows:

 

(h) The number of dissenting Stockholders for which demands for an appraisal thereof have not been withdrawn or for which the holders thereof have not failed to perfect or otherwise waive or lost appraisal rights under the applicable provisions of the MBCA shall not exceed two and one-half percent (2.5%) of the issued and outstanding shares of Company Stock.

 

1.3 Governing Law . This Amendment shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Nevada without regard to principles of conflicts of laws.

 

 
 

 

 

1.4 Counterparts . This Amendment may be executed in one or more counterparts, with the same effect as if all parties had signed the same document. Each such counterpart shall be an original, but all such counterparts together shall constitute a single amendatory instrument. This Amendment shall become effective when each party to this Amendment will have received counterparts signed by all of the other parties. This Amendment, to the extent a signed version hereof or signature hereto is delivered by means of a facsimile machine or electronic mail (any such delivery, an “ Electronic Delivery ”), shall be treated in all manner and respects as an original agreement or instrument and shall be considered to have the same binding legal effect as if it were the original signed version thereof delivered in person. At the request of any party hereto, each other party hereto shall re-execute original forms hereof and deliver them in person to all other parties. No party hereto shall raise the use of Electronic Delivery to deliver a signature or the fact that any signature or agreement or instrument was transmitted or communicated through the use of Electronic Delivery as a defense to the formation of a contract, and each such party forever waives any such defense, except to the extent such defense related to lack of authenticity.

 

1.5 Miscellaneous . Except as expressly set forth in this Amendment, all of the terms and provisions of the Merger Agreement shall remain unchanged, unmodified and in full force and effect, and the Merger Agreement shall be read together and construed with this Amendment. This Amendment, together with the Merger Agreement as amended by this Amendment, shall supersede and replace any prior agreement or arrangement between the parties hereto relating to the subject matter hereof.

 

 

 

[ Remainder of Page Intentionally Left Blank ]

 

 

2
 

 

In Witness Whereof , the parties have executed this Amendment as of the date first above written.

 

 

PARENT:

ALMAH, INC.

   
  By:  /s/ Terrence W. Norchi
    Name: Terrence W. Norchi
    Title: President and CEO

 

 

ACQUISITION CORP.:

ARCH Acquisition Corporation

   
  By:  /s/ Terrence W. Norchi
    Name: Terrence W. Norchi
    Title: President and CEO

 

 

THE COMPANY:

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

   
  By:  /s/ Terrence W. Norchi
    Name: Terrence W. Norchi
    Title: President and CEO

 

 

 

[ Signature Page to Amendment No. 1 to Agreement and Plan of Merger ]

 

 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC. 2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

NOTICE OF STOCK OPTION AWARD

 

Grantee’s Name and Address:    
     
     

 

 

You (the “Grantee”) have been granted an option to purchase shares of Common Stock, subject to the terms and conditions of this Notice of Stock Option Award (the “Notice”), the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time (the “Plan”) and the Stock Option Award Agreement (the “Option Agreement”) attached hereto, as follows. Unless otherwise defined herein, the terms defined in the Plan shall have the same defined meanings in this Notice.

 

Award Number    
Date of Award    
Vesting Commencement Date    
Exercise Price per Share $  
Total Number of Shares Subject to the Option (the “Shares”)    
Total Exercise Price $  
Type of Option:     ____ Incentive Stock Option
    ____ Non-Qualified Stock Option
Expiration Date:    
Post-Termination Exercise Period:    

 

Vesting Schedule :

 

Subject to the Grantee’s Continuous Service and other limitations set forth in this Notice, the Plan and the Option Agreement, the Option may be exercised, in whole or in part, in accordance with the following schedule:

 

 

1
 

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company and the Grantee have executed this Notice and agree that the Option is to be governed by the terms and conditions of this Notice, the Plan, and the Option Agreement.

 

  Arch Therapeutics, Inc.
a Nevada corporation
   
  By:   
     
  Title:  

 

 

THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT THE SHARES SUBJECT TO THE OPTION SHALL VEST, IF AT ALL, ONLY DURING THE PERIOD OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE (NOT THROUGH THE ACT OF BEING HIRED, BEING GRANTED THE OPTION OR ACQUIRING SHARES HEREUNDER). THE GRANTEE FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT NOTHING IN THIS NOTICE, THE OPTION AGREEMENT, OR THE PLAN SHALL CONFER UPON THE GRANTEE ANY RIGHT WITH RESPECT TO FUTURE AWARDS OR CONTINUATION OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE, NOR SHALL IT INTERFERE IN ANY WAY WITH THE GRANTEE’S RIGHT OR THE RIGHT OF THE COMPANY OR RELATED ENTITY TO WHICH THE GRANTEE PROVIDES SERVICES TO TERMINATE THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE, WITH OR WITHOUT CAUSE , AND WITH OR WITHOUT NOTICE. THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT UNLESS THE GRANTEE HAS A WRITTEN EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT WITH THE COMPANY TO THE CONTRARY, THE GRANTEE’S STATUS IS AT WILL.

 

The Grantee acknowledges receipt of a copy of the Plan and the Option Agreement, and represents that he or she is familiar with the terms and provisions thereof, and hereby accepts the Option subject to all of the terms and provisions hereof and thereof. The Grantee has reviewed this Notice, the Plan, and the Option Agreement in their entirety, has had an opportunity to obtain the advice of counsel prior to executing this Notice, and fully understands all provisions of this Notice, the Plan and the Option Agreement. The Grantee hereby agrees that all questions of interpretation and administration relating to this Notice, the Plan and the Option Agreement shall be resolved by the Administrator in accordance with Section 14 of the Option Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to the venue selection in accordance with Section 15 of the Option Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to notify the Company upon any change in the residence address indicated in this Notice.

 

 

 

Dated:     Signed:  
        Grantee

 

2
 

 

Award Number: ___________

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC. 2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

STOCK OPTION AWARD AGREEMENT

 

1. Grant of Option . Arch Therapeutics, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), hereby grants to the Grantee (the “Grantee”) named in the Notice of Stock Option Award (the “Notice”), an option (the “Option”) to purchase the Total Number of Shares of Common Stock subject to the Option (the “Shares”) set forth in the Notice, at the Exercise Price per Share set forth in the Notice (the “Exercise Price”) subject to the terms and provisions of the Notice, this Stock Option Award Agreement (the “Option Agreement”) and the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time (the “Plan”), which are incorporated herein by reference. Unless otherwise defined herein, the terms defined in the Plan shall have the same defined meanings in this Option Agreement.

 

If designated in the Notice as an Incentive Stock Option, the Option is intended to qualify as an Incentive Stock Option as defined in Section 422 of the Code. However, notwithstanding such designation, the Option will qualify as an Incentive Stock Option under the Code only to the extent the $100,000 dollar limitation of Section 422(d) of the Code is not exceeded. The $100,000 limitation of Section 422(d) of the Code is calculated based on the aggregate Fair Market Value of the Shares subject to options designated as Incentive Stock Options which become exercisable for the first time by the Grantee during any calendar year (under all plans of the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company). For purposes of this calculation, Incentive Stock Options shall be taken into account in the order in which they were granted, and the Fair Market Value of the shares subject to such options shall be determined as of the grant date of the relevant option.

 

2. Exercise of Option .

 

(a) Right to Exercise . The Option shall be exercisable during its term in accordance with the Vesting Schedule set out in the Notice and with the applicable provisions of the Plan and this Option Agreement. The Option shall be subject to the provisions of Section   11 of the Plan relating to the exercisability or termination of the Option in the event of a Corporate Transaction or Change in Control. The Grantee shall be subject to reasonable limitations on the number of requested exercises during any monthly or weekly period as determined by the Administrator. In no event shall the Company issue fractional Shares.

 

(b) Method of Exercise . The Option shall be exercisable by delivery of an exercise notice (a form of which is attached as Exhibit A) or by such other procedure as specified from time to time by the Administrator which shall state the election to exercise the Option, the whole number of Shares in respect of which the Option is being exercised, and such other provisions as may be required by the Administrator. The exercise notice shall be delivered in person, by certified mail, or by such other method (including electronic transmission) as determined from time to time by the Administrator to the Company accompanied by payment of the Exercise Price and all applicable income and employment taxes required to be withheld. The Option shall be deemed to be exercised upon receipt by the Company of such notice accompanied by the Exercise Price and all applicable withholding taxes, which, to the extent selected, shall be deemed to be satisfied by use of the broker-dealer sale and remittance procedure to pay the Exercise Price provided in Section 4(d) below to the extent such procedure is available to the Grantee at the time of exercise and such an exercise would not violate any Applicable Law.

 

1
 

 

(c) Taxes . No Shares will be delivered to the Grantee or other person pursuant to the exercise of the Option until the Grantee or other person has made arrangements acceptable to the Administrator for the satisfaction of applicable income tax and employment tax withholding obligations, including, without limitation, such other tax obligations of the Grantee incident to the receipt of Shares. Upon exercise of the Option, the Company or the Grantee’s employer may offset or withhold (from any amount owed by the Company or the Grantee’s employer to the Grantee) or collect from the Grantee or other person an amount sufficient to satisfy such tax withholding obligations. Furthermore, in the event of any determination that the Company has failed to withhold a sum sufficient to pay all withholding taxes due in connection with the Option, the Grantee agrees to pay the Company the amount of such deficiency in cash within five (5) days after receiving a written demand from the Company to do so, whether or not the Grantee is an employee of the Company at that time.

 

(d) Section 16(b) . Notwithstanding any provision of this Option Agreement to the contrary, other than termination of the Grantee’s Continuous Service for Cause, if a sale within the applicable time periods set forth in Sections 6, 7 or 8 herein of Shares acquired upon the exercise of the Option would subject the Grantee to suit under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act, the Option shall remain exercisable until the earliest to occur of (i) the tenth (10th) day following the date on which a sale of such Shares by the Grantee would no longer be subject to such suit, (ii) the one hundred and ninetieth (190th) day after the Grantee’s termination of Continuous Service, or (iii) the date on which the Option expires.

 

3. Grantee’s Representations . Concurrently with the grant of this Option (and/or in connection with the exercise of this Option), Participant shall deliver to the Company any such investment representation statements that the Company requests, in such form as the Company shall determine in its discretion.

 

4. Method of Payment . Payment of the Exercise Price shall be made by any of the following, or a combination thereof, at the election of the Grantee; provided, however, that such exercise method does not then violate any Applicable Law:

 

(a) cash;

 

(b) check;

 

(c) surrender of Shares held for the requisite period, if any, necessary to avoid a charge to the Company’s earnings for financial reporting purposes, or delivery of a properly executed form of attestation of ownership of Shares as the Administrator may require which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender or attestation equal to the aggregate Exercise Price of the Shares as to which the Option is being exercised;

 

2
 

 

(d) payment through a “net exercise” such that, without the payment of any funds, the Grantee may exercise the Option and receive the net number of Shares equal to (i) the number of Shares as to which the Option is being exercised, multiplied by (ii) a fraction, the numerator of which is the Fair Market Value per Share (on such date as is determined by the Administrator) less the Exercise Price per Share, and the denominator of which is such Fair Market Value per Share (the number of net Shares to be received shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number of Shares); or

 

(e) if the exercise occurs on or after the Registration Date, payment through a broker-dealer sale and remittance procedure pursuant to which the Grantee (i) shall provide written instructions to a Company-designated brokerage firm to effect the immediate sale of some or all of the purchased Shares and remit to the Company sufficient funds to cover the aggregate exercise price payable for the purchased Shares and (ii) shall provide written directives to the Company to deliver the certificates for the purchased Shares directly to such brokerage firm in order to complete the sale transaction.

 

5. Restrictions on Exercise . The Option may not be exercised if the issuance of the Shares subject to the Option upon such exercise would constitute a violation of any Applicable Laws. In addition, the Option may not be exercised until such time as the Plan has been approved by the stockholders of the Company. If the exercise of the Option within the applicable time periods set forth in Section 6, 7 and 8 of this Option Agreement is prevented by the provisions of this Section 5, the Option shall remain exercisable until one (1) month after the date the Grantee is notified by the Company that the Option is exercisable, but in any event no later than the Expiration Date set forth in the Notice.

 

6. Termination or Change of Continuous Service . In the event the Grantee’s Continuous Service terminates, the Grantee may, but only during the Post-Termination Exercise Period, exercise the portion of the Option that was vested at the date of such termination (the “Termination Date”). The Post-Termination Exercise Period shall commence on the Termination Date. In no event, however, shall the Option be exercised later than the Expiration Date set forth in the Notice. In the event of the Grantee’s change in status from Employee, Director or Consultant to any other status of Employee, Director or Consultant, the Option shall remain in effect and the Option shall continue to vest in accordance with the Vesting Schedule set forth in the Notice; provided, however, that with respect to any Incentive Stock Option that shall remain in effect after a change in status from Employee to Director or Consultant, such Incentive Stock Option shall cease to be treated as an Incentive Stock Option and shall be treated as a Non-Qualified Stock Option on the day three (3) months and one (1) day following such change in status. Except as provided in Sections 7 and 8 below, to the extent that the Option was unvested on the Termination Date, or if the Grantee does not exercise the vested portion of the Option within the Post-Termination Exercise Period, the Option shall terminate.

 

7. Disability of Grantee . In the event the Grantee’s Continuous Service terminates as a result of his or her Disability, the Grantee may, but only within twelve (12) months commencing on the Termination Date (but in no event later than the Expiration Date), exercise the portion of the Option that was vested on the Termination Date; provided, however, that if such Disability is not a “disability” as such term is defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code and the Option is an Incentive Stock Option, such Incentive Stock Option shall cease to be treated as an Incentive Stock Option and shall be treated as a Non-Qualified Stock Option on the day three (3) months and one (1) day following the Termination Date. To the extent that the Option was unvested on the Termination Date, or if the Grantee does not exercise the vested portion of the Option within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate. Section 22(e)(3) of the Code provides that an individual is permanently and totally disabled if he or she is unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than twelve (12) months.

 

3
 

 

8. Death of Grantee . In the event of the termination of the Grantee’s Continuous Service as a result of his or her death, or in the event of the Grantee’s death during the Post-Termination Exercise Period or during the twelve (12) month period following the Grantee’s termination of Continuous Service as a result of his or her Disability, the person who acquired the right to exercise the Option pursuant to Section 9 may exercise the portion of the Option that was vested at the date of termination within twelve (12) months commencing on the date of death (but in no event later than the Expiration Date). To the extent that the Option was unvested on the date of death, or if the vested portion of the Option is not exercised within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate.

 

9. Transferability of Option . The Option, if an Incentive Stock Option, may not be transferred in any manner other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution and may be exercised during the lifetime of the Grantee only by the Grantee. The Option, if a Non-Qualified Stock Option, may not be transferred in any manner other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution, provided, however, that a Non-Qualified Stock Option may be transferred during the lifetime of the Grantee to the extent and in the manner authorized by the Administrator. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Grantee may designate one or more beneficiaries of the Grantee’s Incentive Stock Option or Non-Qualified Stock Option in the event of the Grantee’s death on a beneficiary designation form provided by the Administrator. Following the death of the Grantee, the Option, to the extent provided in Section 8, may be exercised (a) by the person or persons designated under the deceased Grantee’s beneficiary designation or (b) in the absence of an effectively designated beneficiary, by the Grantee’s legal representative or by any person empowered to do so under the deceased Grantee’s will or under the then applicable laws of descent and distribution. The terms of the Option shall be binding upon the executors, administrators, heirs, successors and transferees of the Grantee.

 

10. Term of Option . The Option must be exercised no later than the Expiration Date set forth in the Notice or such earlier date as otherwise provided herein. After the Expiration Date or such earlier date, the Option shall be of no further force or effect and may not be exercised.

 

11. Tax Consequences . The Grantee may incur tax liability as a result of the Grantee’s purchase or disposition of the Shares. THE GRANTEE SHOULD CONSULT A TAX ADVISER BEFORE EXERCISING THE OPTION OR DISPOSING OF THE SHARES.

 

12. Entire Agreement: Governing Law . The Notice, the Plan and this Option Agreement constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede in their entirety all prior undertakings and agreements of the Company and the Grantee with respect to the subject matter hereof, and may not be modified adversely to the Grantee’s interest except by means of a writing signed by the Company and the Grantee. Nothing in the Notice, the Plan and this Option Agreement (except as expressly provided therein) is intended to confer any rights or remedies on any persons other than the parties. The Notice, the Plan and this Option Agreement are to be construed in accordance with and governed by the internal laws of the State of Nevada without giving effect to any choice of law rule that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the internal laws of the State of Nevada to the rights and duties of the parties. Should any provision of the Notice, the Plan or this Option Agreement be determined to be illegal or unenforceable, such provision shall be enforced to the fullest extent allowed by law and the other provisions shall nevertheless remain effective and shall remain enforceable.

 

4
 

 

13. Construction . The captions used in the Notice and this Option Agreement are inserted for convenience and shall not be deemed a part of the Option for construction or interpretation. Except when otherwise indicated by the context, the singular shall include the plural and the plural shall include the singular. Use of the term “or” is not intended to be exclusive, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

 

14. Administration and Interpretation . Any question or dispute regarding the administration or interpretation of the Notice, the Plan or this Option Agreement shall be submitted by the Grantee or by the Company to the Administrator. The resolution of such question or dispute by the Administrator shall be final and binding on all persons.

 

15. Venue . The Company, the Grantee, and the Grantee’s assignees pursuant to Section 9 (the “parties”) agree that any suit, action, or proceeding arising out of or relating to the Notice, the Plan or this Option Agreement shall be brought in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (or should such court lack jurisdiction to hear such action, suit or proceeding, in a Massachusetts state court in the County of Middlesex) and that the parties shall submit to the jurisdiction of such court. The parties irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection the party may have to the laying of venue for any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court. If any one or more provisions of this Section 15 shall for any reason be held invalid or unenforceable, it is the specific intent of the parties that such provisions shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it or its application valid and enforceable.

 

16. Notices . Any notice required or permitted hereunder shall be given in writing and shall be deemed effectively given upon personal delivery, upon deposit for delivery by an internationally recognized express mail courier service or upon deposit in the United States mail by certified mail (if the parties are within the United States), with postage and fees prepaid, addressed to the other party at its address as shown in these instruments, or to such other address as such party may designate in writing from time to time to the other party.

 

END OF AGREEMENT

 

 

5
 

 

 

EXHIBIT A

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC. 2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

EXERCISE NOTICE

 

Arch Therapeutics, Inc.

Attention: Secretary

 

1. Exercise of Option . Effective as of today, ______________, ___ the undersigned (the “Grantee”) hereby elects to exercise the Grantee’s option to purchase ___________ shares of the Common Stock (the “Shares”) of Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) under and pursuant to the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time (the “Plan”) and the [  ] Incentive [  ] Non-Qualified Stock Option Award Agreement (the “Option Agreement”) and Notice of Stock Option Award (the “Notice”) dated ______________, ________. Unless otherwise defined herein, the terms defined in the Plan shall have the same defined meanings in this Exercise Notice.

 

2. Representations of the Grantee . The Grantee acknowledges that the Grantee has received, read and understood the Notice, the Plan and the Option Agreement and agrees to abide by and be bound by their terms and conditions.

 

3. Rights as Stockholder . Until the stock certificate evidencing such Shares is issued (as evidenced by the appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights as a stockholder shall exist with respect to the Shares, notwithstanding the exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be issued) such stock certificate promptly after the Option is exercised. No adjustment will be made for a dividend or other right for which the record date is prior to the date the stock certificate is issued, except as provided in Section 11 of the Plan.

 

4. Delivery of Payment . The Grantee herewith delivers to the Company the full Exercise Price for the Shares.

 

5. Tax Consultation . The Grantee understands that the Grantee may suffer adverse tax consequences as a result of the Grantee’s purchase or disposition of the Shares. The Grantee represents that the Grantee has consulted with any tax consultants the Grantee deems advisable in connection with the purchase or disposition of the Shares and that the Grantee is not relying on the Company for any tax advice.

 

6. Taxes . The Grantee agrees to satisfy all applicable foreign, federal, state and local income and employment tax withholding obligations and herewith delivers to the Company the full amount of such obligations or has made arrangements acceptable to the Company to satisfy such obligations. In the case of an Incentive Stock Option, the Grantee also agrees, as partial consideration for the designation of the Option as an Incentive Stock Option, to notify the Company in writing within thirty (30) days of any disposition of any shares acquired by exercise of the Option if such disposition occurs within two (2) years from the Date of Award or within one (1) year from the date the Shares were transferred to the Grantee.

 

1
 

 

7. Successors and Assigns . The Company may assign any of its rights under this Exercise Notice to single or multiple assignees, and this agreement shall inure to the benefit of the successors and assigns of the Company. This Exercise Notice shall be binding upon the Grantee and his or her heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns.

 

8. Construction . The captions used in this Exercise Notice are inserted for convenience and shall not be deemed a part of this agreement for construction or interpretation. Except when otherwise indicated by the context, the singular shall include the plural and the plural shall include the singular. Use of the term “or” is not intended to be exclusive, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

 

9. Administration and Interpretation . The Grantee hereby agrees that any question or dispute regarding the administration or interpretation of this Exercise Notice shall be submitted by the Grantee or by the Company to the Administrator. The resolution of such question or dispute by the Administrator shall be final and binding on all persons.

 

10. Governing Law; Severability . This Exercise Notice is to be construed in accordance with and governed by the internal laws of the State of Massachusetts without giving effect to any choice of law rule that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the internal laws of the State of Massachusetts to the rights and duties of the parties. Should any provision of this Exercise Notice be determined by a court of law to be illegal or unenforceable, such provision shall be enforced to the fullest extent allowed by law and the other provisions shall nevertheless remain effective and shall remain enforceable.

 

11. Notices . Any notice required or permitted hereunder shall be given in writing and shall be deemed effectively given upon personal delivery, upon deposit for delivery by an internationally recognized express mail courier service or upon deposit in the United States mail by certified mail (if the parties are within the United States), with postage and fees prepaid, addressed to the other party at its address as shown below beneath its signature, or to such other address as such party may designate in writing from time to time to the other party.

 

12. Further Instruments . The parties agree to execute such further instruments and to take such further action as may be reasonably necessary to carry out the purposes and intent of this agreement.

 

13. Entire Agreement . The Notice, the Plan and the Option Agreement are incorporated herein by reference and together with this Exercise Notice constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede in their entirety all prior undertakings and agreements of the Company and the Grantee with respect to the subject matter hereof, and may not be modified adversely to the Grantee’s interest except by means of a writing signed by the Company and the Grantee. Nothing in the Notice, the Plan, the Option Agreement and this Exercise Notice (except as expressly provided therein) is intended to confer any rights or remedies on any persons other than the parties.

 

2
 

 

 

 

Submitted by:   Accepted by:
     
GRANTEE:   ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.
     
    By:   
       
    Title:  
(Signature)      
       
Address :   Address :
     

 

 

3

 

 

 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

 

2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

NOTICE OF Restricted Stock Unit AWARD

 

 

Grantee’s Name and Address:

   
     
     

 

You (the “Grantee”) have been granted an award of Restricted Stock Units (the “Award”), subject to the terms and conditions of this Notice of Restricted Stock Unit Award (the “Notice”), the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time (the “Plan”) and the Restricted Stock Unit Agreement (the “Agreement”) attached hereto, as follows. Unless otherwise provided herein, the terms in this Notice shall have the same meaning as those defined in the Plan.

 

Award Number

   
Date of Award    

Vesting Commencement Date

   

Total Number of Restricted Stock Units Awarded (the “Units”)

   

 

Vesting Schedule :

 

Subject to the Grantee’s Continuous Service and other limitations set forth in this Notice, the Agreement and the Plan, the Units will “vest” in accordance with the following schedule (the “Vesting Schedule”):

  

In the event of the Grantee’s change in status from Employee to Consultant or Director, the determination of whether such change in status results in a termination of Continuous Service will be determined in accordance with Section 409A of the Code.

 

[During any authorized leave of absence, the vesting of the Units as provided in this schedule shall be suspended (to the extent permitted under Section 409A of the Code) after the leave of absence exceeds a period of three (3) months. The Vesting Schedule of the Units shall be extended by the length of the suspension. Vesting of the Units shall resume upon the Grantee’s termination of the leave of absence and return to service to the Company or a Related Entity; provided, however, that if the leave of absence exceeds six (6) months, and a return to service upon expiration of such leave is not guaranteed by statute or contract, then (a) the Grantee’s Continuous Service shall be deemed to terminate on the first date following such six-month period and (b) the Grantee will forfeit the Units that are unvested on the date of the Grantee’s termination of Continuous Service. An authorized leave of absence shall include sick leave, military leave, or other bona fide leave of absence (such as temporary employment by the government). Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to a leave of absence due to any medically determinable physical or mental impairment of the Grantee that can be expected to result in death or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than six (6) months, where such impairment causes the Grantee to be unable to perform the duties of the Grantee’s position of employment or substantially similar position of employment, a twenty-nine (29) month period of absence shall be substituted for such six (6) month period above.]

 

 
 

 

For purposes of this Notice and the Agreement, the term “vest” shall mean, with respect to any Units, that such Units are no longer subject to forfeiture to the Company. If the Grantee would become vested in a fraction of a Unit, such Unit shall not vest until the Grantee becomes vested in the entire Unit.

 

[Vesting shall cease upon the date the Grantee terminates Continuous Service for any reason, including death or Disability. In the event the Grantee terminates Continuous Service for any reason, including death or Disability, any unvested Units held by the Grantee immediately upon such termination of the Grantee’s Continuous Service shall be forfeited and deemed reconveyed to the Company and the Company shall thereafter be the legal and beneficial owner of such reconveyed Units and shall have all rights and interest in or related thereto without further action by the Grantee.]

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company and the Grantee have executed this Notice and agree that the Award is to be governed by the terms and conditions of this Notice, the Plan, and the Agreement.

 

  Arch Therapeutics, Inc.,
a Nevada corporation
   
  By:   
     
  Title:  
     
  Date:  

 

 

THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT THE UNITS SHALL VEST, IF AT ALL, ONLY DURING THE PERIOD OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE OR AS OTHERWISE SPECIFICALLY PROVIDED HEREIN (NOT THROUGH THE ACT OF BEING HIRED, BEING GRANTED THIS AWARD OR ACQUIRING SHARES HEREUNDER). THE GRANTEE FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT NOTHING IN THIS NOTICE, THE AGREEMENT, NOR IN THE PLAN, SHALL CONFER UPON THE GRANTEE ANY RIGHT WITH RESPECT TO CONTINUATION OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE, NOR SHALL IT INTERFERE IN ANY WAY WITH THE GRANTEE’S RIGHT OR THE COMPANY’S RIGHT TO TERMINATE THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE AT ANY TIME, WITH OR WITHOUT CAUSE, AND WITH OR WITHOUT NOTICE. THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT UNLESS THE GRANTEE HAS A WRITTEN EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT WITH THE COMPANY TO THE CONTRARY, THE GRANTEE’S STATUS IS AT WILL.

 

2
 

 

Grantee Acknowledges and Agrees :

 

The Grantee acknowledges receipt of a copy of the Plan and the Agreement and represents that he or she is familiar with the terms and provisions thereof, and hereby accepts the Award subject to all of the terms and provisions hereof and thereof. The Grantee has reviewed this Notice, the Agreement and the Plan in their entirety, has had an opportunity to obtain the advice of counsel prior to executing this Notice and fully understands all provisions of this Notice, the Agreement and the Plan. The Grantee further agrees and acknowledges that this Award is a non-elective arrangement pursuant to Section 409A of the Code.

 

The Grantee further acknowledges that, from time to time, the Company may be in a “blackout period” and/or subject to applicable federal securities laws that could subject the Grantee to liability for engaging in any transaction involving the sale of the Company’s Shares. The Grantee further acknowledges and agrees that, prior to the sale of any Shares acquired under this Award, it is the Grantee’s responsibility to determine whether or not such sale of Shares will subject the Grantee to liability under insider trading rules or other applicable federal securities laws.

 

The Grantee hereby agrees that all questions of interpretation and administration relating to this Notice, the Plan and the Agreement shall be resolved by the Administrator in accordance with Section 8 of the Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to the venue and jurisdiction selection in accordance with Section 9 of the Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to notify the Company upon any change in his or her residence address indicated in this Notice.

 

Dated:      
      Grantee’s Signature
       
      Grantee’s Printed Name
       
       
      Address
       
      City, State & Zip

 

3
 

 

Award Number: __________________

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC.

2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

RESTRICTED STOCK UNIT AGREEMENT

 

1. Issuance of Units . Arch Therapeutics, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), hereby issues to the Grantee (the “Grantee”) named in the Notice of Restricted Stock Unit Award (the “Notice”) an award (the “Award”) of the Total Number of Restricted Stock Units Awarded set forth in the Notice (the “Units”), subject to the Notice, this Restricted Stock Unit Agreement (the “Agreement”) and the terms and provisions of the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time (the “Plan”), which is incorporated herein by reference. Unless otherwise provided herein, the terms in this Agreement shall have the same meaning as those defined in the Plan.

 

2. Transfer Restrictions . The Units may not be transferred in any manner other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution.

 

3. Conversion of Units and Issuance of Shares .

 

(a) General . Subject to Sections 3(b) and 3(c), one share of Common Stock shall be issuable for each Unit subject to the Award (the “Shares”) upon vesting. Immediately thereafter, or as soon as administratively feasible, the Company will transfer the appropriate number of Shares to the Grantee after satisfaction of any required tax or other withholding obligations. Any fractional Unit remaining after the Award is fully vested shall be discarded and shall not be converted into a fractional Share. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the relevant number of Shares shall be issued no later than March 15th of the year following the calendar year in which the Award vests.

 

(b) Delay of Conversion . The conversion of the Units into the Shares under Section 3(a) above, shall be delayed in the event the Company reasonably anticipates that the issuance of the Shares would constitute a violation of federal securities laws or other Applicable Law. If the conversion of the Units into the Shares is delayed by the provisions of this Section 3(b), the conversion of the Units into the Shares shall occur at the earliest date at which the Company reasonably anticipates issuing the Shares will not cause a violation of federal securities laws or other Applicable Law. For purposes of this Section 3(b), the issuance of Shares that would cause inclusion in gross income or the application of any penalty provision or other provision of the Code is not considered a violation of Applicable Law.

 

(c) Delay of Issuance of Shares . The Company shall delay the issuance of any Shares under this Section 3 to the extent necessary to comply with Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Code (relating to payments made to certain “specified employees” of certain publicly-traded companies); in such event, any Shares to which the Grantee would otherwise be entitled during the six (6) month period following the date of the Grantee’s termination of Continuous Service will be issuable on the first business day following the expiration of such six (6) month period.

 

 
 

 

 

4. Right to Shares . The Grantee shall not have any right in, to or with respect to any of the Shares (including any voting rights or rights with respect to dividends paid on the Common Stock) issuable under the Award until the Award is settled by the issuance of such Shares to the Grantee.

 

5. Taxes .

 

(a) Tax Liability . The Grantee is ultimately liable and responsible for all taxes owed by the Grantee in connection with the Award, regardless of any action the Company or any Related Entity takes with respect to any tax withholding obligations that arise in connection with the Award. Neither the Company nor any Related Entity makes any representation or undertaking regarding the treatment of any tax withholding in connection with any aspect of the Award, including the grant, vesting, assignment, release or cancellation of the Units, the delivery of Shares, the subsequent sale of any Shares acquired upon vesting and the receipt of any dividends or dividend equivalents. The Company does not commit and is under no obligation to structure the Award to reduce or eliminate the Grantee’s tax liability.

 

(b) Payment of Withholding Taxes . Prior to any event in connection with the Award (e.g., vesting) that the Company determines may result in any tax withholding obligation, whether United States federal, state, local or non-U.S., including any social insurance, employment tax, payment on account or other tax-related obligation (the “Tax Withholding Obligation”), the Grantee must arrange for the satisfaction of the minimum amount of such Tax Withholding Obligation in a manner acceptable to the Company.

 

(i) By Share Withholding. If permissible under Applicable Law, the Grantee authorizes the Company to, upon the exercise of its sole discretion, withhold from those Shares otherwise issuable to the Grantee the whole number of Shares sufficient to satisfy the minimum applicable Tax Withholding Obligation. The Grantee acknowledges that the withheld Shares may not be sufficient to satisfy the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation. Accordingly, the Grantee agrees to pay to the Company or any Related Entity as soon as practicable, including through additional payroll withholding, any amount of the Tax Withholding Obligation that is not satisfied by the withholding of Shares described above.

 

(ii) By Sale of Shares . Unless the Grantee determines to satisfy the Tax Withholding Obligation by some other means in accordance with clause (iii) below, the Grantee’s acceptance of this Award constitutes the Grantee’s instruction and authorization to the Company and any brokerage firm determined acceptable to the Company for such purpose to, upon the exercise of Company’s sole discretion, sell on the Grantee’s behalf a whole number of Shares from those Shares issuable to the Grantee as the Company determines to be appropriate to generate cash proceeds sufficient to satisfy the minimum applicable Tax Withholding Obligation. Such Shares will be sold on the day such Tax Withholding Obligation arises (e.g., a vesting date) or as soon thereafter as practicable. The Grantee will be responsible for all broker’s fees and other costs of sale, and the Grantee agrees to indemnify and hold the Company harmless from any losses, costs, damages, or expenses relating to any such sale. To the extent the proceeds of such sale exceed the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation, the Company agrees to pay such excess in cash to the Grantee. The Grantee acknowledges that the Company or its designee is under no obligation to arrange for such sale at any particular price, and that the proceeds of any such sale may not be sufficient to satisfy the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation. Accordingly, the Grantee agrees to pay to the Company or any Related Entity as soon as practicable, including through additional payroll withholding, any amount of the Tax Withholding Obligation that is not satisfied by the sale of Shares described above.

 

2
 

 

(iii) By Check, Wire Transfer or Other Means . At any time not less than five (5) business days (or such fewer number of business days as determined by the Administrator) before any Tax Withholding Obligation arises (e.g., a vesting date), the Grantee may elect to satisfy the Grantee’s Tax Withholding Obligation by delivering to the Company an amount that the Company determines is sufficient to satisfy the Tax Withholding Obligation by (x) wire transfer to such account as the Company may direct, (y) delivery of a certified check payable to the Company, or (z) such other means as specified from time to time by the Administrator.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company or a Related Entity also may satisfy any Tax Withholding Obligation by offsetting any amounts (including, but not limited to, salary, bonus and severance payments) payable to the Grantee by the Company and/or a Related Entity. Furthermore, in the event of any determination that the Company has failed to withhold a sum sufficient to pay all withholding taxes due in connection with the Award, the Grantee agrees to pay the Company the amount of such deficiency in cash within five (5) days after receiving a written demand from the Company to do so, whether or not the Grantee is an employee of the Company at that time.

 

6. Entire Agreement; Governing Law . The Notice, the Plan and this Agreement constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede in their entirety all prior undertakings and agreements of the Company and the Grantee with respect to the subject matter hereof, and may not be modified adversely to the Grantee’s interest except by means of a writing signed by the Company and the Grantee. These agreements are to be construed in accordance with and governed by the internal laws of the State of Nevada without giving effect to any choice of law rule that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the internal laws of the State of Nevada to the rights and duties of the parties. Should any provision of the Notice or this Agreement be determined to be illegal or unenforceable, the other provisions shall nevertheless remain effective and shall remain enforceable.

 

7. Construction . The captions used in the Notice and this Agreement are inserted for convenience and shall not be deemed a part of the Award for construction or interpretation. Except when otherwise indicated by the context, the singular shall include the plural and the plural shall include the singular. Use of the term “or” is not intended to be exclusive, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

 

8. Administration and Interpretation . Any question or dispute regarding the administration or interpretation of the Notice, the Plan or this Agreement shall be submitted by the Grantee or by the Company to the Administrator. The resolution of such question or dispute by the Administrator shall be final and binding on all persons.

 

3
 

 

9. Venue and Jurisdiction . The parties agree that any suit, action, or proceeding arising out of or relating to the Notice, the Plan or this Agreement shall be brought exclusively in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (or should such court lack jurisdiction to hear such action, suit or proceeding, in a Massachusetts state court in the County of Middlesex) and that the parties shall submit to the jurisdiction of such court. The parties irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection the party may have to the laying of venue for any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court. If any one or more provisions of this Section 9 shall for any reason be held invalid or unenforceable, it is the specific intent of the parties that such provisions shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it or its application valid and enforceable.

 

10. Notices . Any notice required or permitted hereunder shall be given in writing and shall be deemed effectively given upon personal delivery, upon deposit for delivery by an internationally recognized express mail courier service or upon deposit in the United States mail by certified mail (if the parties are within the United States), with postage and fees prepaid, addressed to the other party at its address as shown in these instruments, or to such other address as such party may designate in writing from time to time to the other party.

 

11. Language . If the Grantee has received this Agreement or any other document related to the Plan translated into a language other than English and if the translated version is different than the English version, the English version will control, unless otherwise prescribed by Applicable Law.

 

12. Amendment and Delay to Meet the Requirements of Section 409A . The Grantee acknowledges that the Company, in the exercise of its sole discretion and without the consent of the Grantee, may amend or modify this Agreement in any manner and delay the issuance of any Shares issuable pursuant to this Agreement to the minimum extent necessary to meet the requirements of Section 409A of the Code as amplified by any Treasury regulations or guidance from the Internal Revenue Service as the Company deems appropriate or advisable. In addition, the Company makes no representation that the Award will comply with Section 409A of the Code and makes no undertaking to prevent Section 409A of the Code from applying to the Award or to mitigate its effects on any deferrals or payments made in respect of the Units. The Grantee is encouraged to consult a tax adviser regarding the potential impact of Section 409A of the Code.

 

END OF AGREEMENT

 

 

4

 

 

 

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, INC. 2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

NOTICE OF RESTRICTED STOCK Bonus AWARD

 

Grantee’s Name and Address:    
     
     

 

You (the “Grantee”) have been granted shares of Common Stock of the Company (the “Award”), subject to the terms and conditions of this Notice of Restricted Stock Bonus Award (the “Notice”), the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. Stock Incentive Plan (the “Plan”), as amended from time to time, and the Restricted Stock Bonus Award Agreement (the “Agreement”) attached hereto, as follows. Unless otherwise defined herein, the terms defined in the Plan shall have the same defined meanings in this Notice.

 

Award Number    
Date of Award    
Vesting Commencement Date    
Total Number of Shares of Common Stock Awarded (the “Shares”)    

 

 

Vesting Schedule :

 

Subject to the Grantee’s Continuous Service and other limitations set forth in this Notice, the Plan and the Agreement, the Shares will “vest” in accordance with the following schedule:

 

1
 

 

In the event of the Grantee’s change in status from Employee, Director or Consultant to any other status of Employee, Director or Consultant, the Shares shall continue to vest in accordance with the Vesting Schedule set forth above.

 

For purposes of this Notice and the Agreement, the term “vest” shall mean, with respect to any Shares, that such Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture to the Company. Shares that have not vested are deemed “Restricted Shares.” If the Grantee would become vested in a fraction of a Restricted Share, such Restricted Share shall not vest until the Grantee becomes vested in the entire Share.

 

Vesting shall cease upon the date of termination of the Grantee’s Continuous Service for any reason, including death or Disability. In the event the Grantee’s Continuous Service is terminated for any reason, including death or Disability, any Restricted Shares held by the Grantee immediately following such termination of Continuous Service shall be deemed reconveyed to the Company and the Company shall thereafter be the legal and beneficial owner of the Restricted Shares and shall have all rights and interest in or related thereto without further action by the Grantee. The foregoing forfeiture provisions set forth in this Notice as to Restricted Shares shall apply to the new capital stock or other property (including cash paid other than as a regular cash dividend) received in exchange for the Shares in consummation of any transaction described in Section 11 of the Plan and such stock or property shall be deemed Additional Securities (as defined in the Agreement) for purposes of the Agreement, but only to the extent the Shares are at the time covered by such forfeiture provisions.

 

The Award shall be subject to the provisions of Section 11 of the Plan in the event of a Corporate Transaction or Change in Control.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company and the Grantee have executed this Notice and agree that the Award is to be governed by the terms and conditions of this Notice, the Plan and the Agreement.

 

  Arch Therapeutics, Inc.,
a Nevada corporation
   
  By:   
     
  Title:  

 

 

THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT THE SHARES SHALL VEST, IF AT ALL, ONLY DURING THE PERIOD OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE (NOT THROUGH THE ACT OF BEING HIRED, BEING GRANTED THIS AWARD OR ACQUIRING SHARES HEREUNDER). THE GRANTEE FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT NOTHING IN THIS NOTICE, THE AGREEMENT NOR THE PLAN SHALL CONFER UPON THE GRANTEE ANY RIGHT WITH RESPECT TO CONTINUATION OF THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE, NOR SHALL IT INTERFERE IN ANY WAY WITH THE GRANTEE’S RIGHT OR THE COMPANY’S RIGHT TO TERMINATE THE GRANTEE’S CONTINUOUS SERVICE AT ANY TIME, WITH OR WITHOUT CAUSE, AND WITH OR WITHOUT NOTICE. THE GRANTEE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT UNLESS THE GRANTEE HAS A WRITTEN EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT WITH THE COMPANY TO THE CONTRARY, THE GRANTEE’S STATUS IS AT WILL.

 

2
 

 

[As a condition to receiving the Shares, the Grantee agrees to refrain from making an election pursuant to Section 83(b) of the Code with respect to the Shares.]

 

The Grantee acknowledges receipt of a copy of the Plan and the Agreement and represents that he or she is familiar with the terms and provisions thereof, and hereby accepts the Award subject to all of the terms and provisions hereof and thereof. The Grantee has reviewed this Notice, the Agreement and the Plan in their entirety, has had an opportunity to obtain the advice of counsel prior to executing this Notice and fully understands all provisions of this Notice, the Agreement and the Plan. The Grantee hereby agrees that all questions of interpretation and administration relating to this Notice, the Plan and the Agreement shall be resolved by the Administrator in accordance with Section 11 of the Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to the venue selection in accordance with Section 12 of the Agreement. The Grantee further agrees to notify the Company upon any change in the residence address indicated in this Notice.

 

Dated:     Signed:  

 

3
 

 

Award Number: __________________

 

ARCH THERAPEUTICS, Inc. 2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

 

RESTRICTED STOCK BONUS AWARD AGREEMENT

 

1. Issuance of Shares . Arch Therapeutics, Inc. a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), hereby issues to the Grantee (the “Grantee”) named in the Notice of Restricted Stock Bonus Award (the “Notice”), the Total Number of Shares of Common Stock Awarded set forth in the Notice (the “Shares”), subject to the Notice, this Restricted Stock Bonus Award Agreement (the “Agreement”) and the terms and provisions of the Arch Therapeutics, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan (the “Plan”), as amended from time to time, which are incorporated herein by reference. Unless otherwise defined herein, the terms defined in the Plan shall have the same defined meanings in this Agreement. All Shares issued hereunder will be deemed issued to the Grantee as fully paid and nonassessable shares, and the Grantee will have the right to vote the Shares at meetings of the Company’s stockholders. The Company shall pay any applicable stock transfer taxes imposed upon the issuance of the Shares to the Grantee hereunder.

 

2. Transfer Restrictions . The Shares issued to the Grantee hereunder may not be sold, transferred by gift, pledged, hypothecated, or otherwise transferred or disposed of by the Grantee prior to the date when the Shares become vested pursuant to the Vesting Schedule set forth in the Notice. Any attempt to transfer Restricted Shares in violation of this Section 2 will be null and void and will be disregarded.

 

3. Escrow of Stock . For purposes of facilitating the enforcement of the provisions of this Agreement, the Grantee agrees, immediately upon receipt of the certificate(s) for the Restricted Shares, to deliver such certificate(s), together with an Assignment Separate from Certificate in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A , executed in blank by the Grantee with respect to each such stock certificate, to the Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the Company, or their designee, to hold in escrow for so long as such Restricted Shares have not vested pursuant to the Vesting Schedule set forth in the Notice, with the authority to take all such actions and to effectuate all such transfers and/or releases as may be necessary or appropriate to accomplish the objectives of this Agreement in accordance with the terms hereof. The Grantee hereby acknowledges that the appointment of the Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the Company (or their designee) as the escrow holder hereunder with the stated authorities is a material inducement to the Company to make this Agreement and that such appointment is coupled with an interest and is accordingly irrevocable. The Grantee agrees that the Restricted Shares may be held electronically in a book entry system maintained by the Company’s transfer agent or other third party and that all the terms and conditions of this Section 3 applicable to certificated Restricted Shares will apply with the same force and effect to such electronic method for holding the Restricted Shares. The Grantee agrees that such escrow holder shall not be liable to any party hereto (or to any other party) for any actions or omissions unless such escrow holder is grossly negligent relative thereto. The escrow holder may rely upon any letter, notice or other document executed by any signature purported to be genuine and may resign at any time. Upon the vesting of Restricted Shares, the escrow holder will, without further order or instruction, transmit to the Grantee the certificate evidencing such Shares; provided , however , that no transmittal of certificates evidencing the Shares will occur unless and until the Grantee has satisfied all Tax Withholding Obligations (as defined in Section 5(c) below).

 

1
 

 

4. Additional Securities and Distributions .

 

(a) Any securities or cash received (other than a regular cash dividend) as the result of ownership of the Restricted Shares (the “Additional Securities”), including, but not by way of limitation, warrants, options and securities received as a stock dividend or stock split, or as a result of a recapitalization or reorganization or other similar change in the Company’s capital structure, shall be retained in escrow in the same manner and subject to the same conditions and restrictions as the Restricted Shares with respect to which they were issued, including, without limitation, the Vesting Schedule set forth in the Notice. The Grantee shall be entitled to direct the Company to exercise any warrant or option received as Additional Securities upon supplying the funds necessary to do so, in which event the securities so purchased shall constitute Additional Securities, but the Grantee may not direct the Company to sell any such warrant or option. If Additional Securities consist of a convertible security, the Grantee may exercise any conversion right, and any securities so acquired shall constitute Additional Securities. In the event of any change in certificates evidencing the Shares or the Additional Securities by reason of any recapitalization, reorganization or other transaction that results in the creation of Additional Securities, the escrow holder is authorized to deliver to the issuer the certificates evidencing the Shares or the Additional Securities in exchange for the certificates of the replacement securities.

 

(b) The Company shall disburse to the Grantee all regular cash dividends with respect to the Shares and Additional Securities (whether vested or not), less any applicable withholding obligations.

 

5. Taxes .

 

(a) [No Section 83(b) Election . As a condition to receiving the Shares, the Grantee agrees to refrain from making an election pursuant to Section 83(b) of the Code with respect to the Shares.]

 

(b) Tax Liability . The Grantee is ultimately liable and responsible for all taxes owed by the Grantee in connection with the Award, regardless of any action the Company or any Related Entity takes with respect to any tax withholding obligations that arise in connection with the Award. Neither the Company nor any Related Entity makes any representation or undertaking regarding the treatment of any tax withholding in connection with the grant or vesting of the Award or the subsequent sale of Shares subject to the Award. The Company and its Related Entities do not commit and are under no obligation to structure the Award to reduce or eliminate the Grantee’s tax liability.

 

(c) Payment of Withholding Taxes . Prior to any event in connection with the Award (e.g., vesting) that the Company determines may result in any tax withholding obligation, whether United States federal, state, local or non-U.S., including any employment tax obligation (the “Tax Withholding Obligation”), the Grantee must arrange for the satisfaction of the minimum amount of such Tax Withholding Obligation in a manner acceptable to the Company.

 

2
 

 

(i) By Share Withholding. The Grantee authorizes the Company to, upon the exercise of its sole discretion, withhold from those Shares issuable to the Grantee the whole number of Shares sufficient to satisfy the minimum applicable Tax Withholding Obligation. The Grantee acknowledges that the withheld Shares may not be sufficient to satisfy the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation. Accordingly, the Grantee agrees to pay to the Company or any Related Entity as soon as practicable, including through additional payroll withholding, any amount of the Tax Withholding Obligation that is not satisfied by the withholding of Shares described above.

 

(ii) By Sale of Shares . Unless the Grantee determines to satisfy the Tax Withholding Obligation by some other means in accordance with clause (iii) below, the Grantee’s acceptance of this Award constitutes the Grantee’s instruction and authorization to the Company and any brokerage firm determined acceptable to the Company for such purpose to sell on the Grantee’s behalf a whole number of Shares from those Shares issuable to the Grantee as the Company determines to be appropriate to generate cash proceeds sufficient to satisfy the minimum applicable Tax Withholding Obligation. Such Shares will be sold on the day such Tax Withholding Obligation arises (e.g., a vesting date) or as soon thereafter as practicable. The Grantee will be responsible for all broker’s fees and other costs of sale, and the Grantee agrees to indemnify and hold the Company harmless from any losses, costs, damages, or expenses relating to any such sale. To the extent the proceeds of such sale exceed the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation, the Company agrees to pay such excess in cash to the Grantee. The Grantee acknowledges that the Company or its designee is under no obligation to arrange for such sale at any particular price, and that the proceeds of any such sale may not be sufficient to satisfy the Grantee’s minimum Tax Withholding Obligation. Accordingly, the Grantee agrees to pay to the Company or any Related Entity as soon as practicable, including through additional payroll withholding, any amount of the Tax Withholding Obligation that is not satisfied by the sale of Shares described above.

 

(iii) By Check, Wire Transfer or Other Means . At any time not less than five (5) business days (or such fewer number of business days as determined by the Administrator) before any Tax Withholding Obligation arises (e.g., a vesting date), the Grantee may elect to satisfy the Grantee’s Tax Withholding Obligation by delivering to the Company an amount that the Company determines is sufficient to satisfy the Tax Withholding Obligation by (x) wire transfer to such account as the Company may direct, (y) delivery of a certified check payable to the Company, or (z) such other means as specified from time to time by the Administrator.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company also may satisfy any Tax Withholding Obligation by offsetting any amounts (including, but not limited to, salary, bonus and severance payments) due to the Grantee by the Company.

 

6. Stop-Transfer Notices . In order to ensure compliance with the restrictions on transfer set forth in this Agreement, the Notice or the Plan, the Company may issue appropriate “stop transfer” instructions to its transfer agent, if any, and, if the Company transfers its own securities, it may make appropriate notations to the same effect in its own records. The Company may issue a “stop transfer” instruction if the Grantee fails to satisfy any Tax Withholding Obligations.

 

3
 

 

7. Refusal to Transfer . The Company shall not be required (i) to transfer on its books any Shares that have been sold or otherwise transferred in violation of any of the provisions of this Agreement or (ii) to treat as owner of such Shares or to accord the right to vote or pay dividends to any purchaser or other transferee to whom such Shares shall have been so transferred.

 

8. Restrictive Legends . The Grantee understands and agrees that the Company shall cause the legends set forth below or legends substantially equivalent thereto, to be placed upon any certificate(s) evidencing ownership of the Shares together with any other legends that may be required by the Company or by state or federal securities laws:

 

THE SHARES REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE ARE RESTRICTED BY THE TERMS OF THAT CERTAIN RESTRICTED STOCK BONUS AWARD AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE COMPANY AND THE NAMED STOCKHOLDER. THE SHARES REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE MAY BE TRANSFERRED ONLY IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUCH AGREEMENT, A COPY OF WHICH IS ON FILE WITH THE SECRETARY OF THE COMPANY.

 

9. Entire Agreement: Governing Law . The Notice, the Plan and this Agreement constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede in their entirety all prior undertakings and agreements of the Company and the Grantee with respect to the subject matter hereof, and may not be modified adversely to the Grantee’s interest except by means of a writing signed by the Company and the Grantee. These agreements are to be construed in accordance with and governed by the internal laws of the State of Nevada without giving effect to any choice of law rule that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the internal laws of the State of Nevada to the rights and duties of the parties. Should any provision of the Notice or this Agreement be determined to be illegal or unenforceable, the other provisions shall nevertheless remain effective and shall remain enforceable.

 

10. Construction . The captions used in the Notice and this Agreement are inserted for convenience and shall not be deemed a part of the Award for construction or interpretation. Except when otherwise indicated by the context, the singular shall include the plural and the plural shall include the singular. Use of the term “or” is not intended to be exclusive, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

 

11. Administration and Interpretation . Any question or dispute regarding the administration or interpretation of the Notice, the Plan or this Agreement shall be submitted by the Grantee or by the Company to the Administrator. The resolution of such question or dispute by the Administrator shall be final and binding on all persons.

 

12. Venue . The parties agree that any suit, action, or proceeding arising out of or relating to the Notice, the Plan or this Agreement shall be brought in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (or should such court lack jurisdiction to hear such action, suit or proceeding, in a Massachusetts state court in the County of Middlesex) and that the parties shall submit to the jurisdiction of such court. The parties irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection the party may have to the laying of venue for any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court. If any one or more provisions of this Section 12 shall for any reason be held invalid or unenforceable, it is the specific intent of the parties that such provisions shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it or its application valid and enforceable.

 

4
 

 

13. Notices . Any notice required or permitted hereunder shall be given in writing and shall be deemed effectively given upon personal delivery, upon deposit for delivery by an internationally recognized express mail courier service or upon deposit in the United States mail by certified mail (if the parties are within the United States), with postage and fees prepaid, addressed to the other party at its address as shown in these instruments, or to such other address as such party may designate in writing from time to time to the other party.

 

END OF AGREEMENT

 

 

5
 

 

EXHIBIT A

 

STOCK ASSIGNMENT SEPARATE FROM CERTIFICATE

 

 

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, ____________________ hereby sells, assigns and transfers unto _______________________, _________ (______) shares of the Common Stock of Arch Therapeutics, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the “Company”), standing in his name on the books of, the Company represented by Certificate No. _________________ herewith, and does hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint the Secretary of the Company attorney to transfer the said stock in the books of the Company with full power of substitution.

 

DATED: ________________

 

____________________________________

 

[Please sign this document but do not date it. The date and information of the transferee will be completed if and when the shares are assigned.]

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

 

Exhibit 31.1

 

Certification of Principal EXECUTIVE Officer

pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or 15d-14(a) under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934

 

I, Terrence W. Norchi, certify that:

 

1. I have reviewed this Form 10-Q of Arch Therapeutics, Inc.;

 

2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

 

(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date: August 14, 2013

 

/s/ TERRENCE W. NORCHI  
Terrence W. Norchi,  
President and Chief Executive Officer
(Principal Executive Officer)
 

 

 

 

 

 

Exhibit 31.2

 

Certification of Principal Financial Officer

pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or 15d-14(a) under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934

 

I, Alan T. Barber, certify that:

 

1. I have reviewed this Form 10-Q of Arch Therapeutics, Inc.;

 

2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

 

(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Dated: August 14, 2013  
   
/s/ ALAN T. BARBER  
Name: Alan T. Barber  
Title: Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
 

 

 

 

 

 

Exhibit 32.1

 

CERTIFICATION REQUIRED BY

SECTION 1350 OF TITLE 18 OF THE UNITED STATES CODE

 

Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, each of the undersigned hereby certifies in his capacity as the specified officer of Arch Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) that, to the best of his knowledge, the quarterly report of the Company on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2013 fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d), as applicable, of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and that the information contained in such report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company as of the dates and for the periods presented in the financial statements included in such report.

 

Dated: August 14, 2013

 

/s/ TERRENCE W. NORCHI  
Name: Terrence W. Norchi  
Title: President and Chief Executive Officer
(Principal Executive Officer)
 
   
Dated: August 14, 2013  
   
/s/ ALAN T. BARBER  
Name: Alan T. Barber  
Title: Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
 

 

This certification accompanies this Report on Form 10-Q pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and shall not be deemed filed by the Company for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Such certification will not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except to the extent that the Company specifically incorporates it by reference.