Zug, Switzerland, February 1, 2019 – Auris Medical Holding AG (NASDAQ: EARS), a clinical-stage company dedicated to developing therapeutics that address important unmet medical needs in neurotology and central nervous system disorders, today announced the complete repayment of its loan facility with Hercules Capital, Inc. The repayment will result in a significant reduction of the Company’s interest expense, improve its balance sheet and enhance its financial flexibility.
On July 19, 2016, the Company had entered into a loan and security agreement with Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. (“Hercules”) and drawn $12.5 million under the facility. Amortization started on July 1, 2017; on April 5, 2018, the Company made an extraordinary repayment of $5 million in principal in exchange for the elimination of a liquidity covenant of the same amount. On January 31, 2019, the Company made the final payment to Hercules under the facility, comprising the last amortization rate as well as an end of term charge, 12 months ahead of the original schedule. With the final payment, all covenants and collaterals in favor of Hercules have been lifted.
As part of its current funding program, the Company submitted today a registration statement on Form F-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for up to 10,000,000 common shares that may be issued under the purchase agreement established on May 2, 2018 with Lincoln Park Capital, LLC (“LPC”). Share subscriptions under the equity line may take place over the remaining 22-month period after the registration statement is declared effective by the SEC. Auris Medical will control the timing of any future investment by LPC under this purchase agreement. The subscription price of the common shares will be based on the prevailing market prices of the Company’s shares at the time of each issuance to LPC. The Company has raised a total of $1.0 million under the current purchase agreement.
About Auris Medical
Auris Medical is a Swiss biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing therapeutics that address important unmet medical needs in neurotology and mental health supportive care. The company is focused on the development of intranasal betahistine for the treatment of vertigo (AM-125) and for the prevention of antipsychotic-induced weight gain and somnolence (AM-201). These projects have gone through two Phase 1 trials and will move into proof-of-concept studies in 2019. In addition Auris Medical has two Phase 3 programs under development: Sonsuvi® (AM-111) for acute inner ear hearing loss and Keyzilen® (AM-101) for acute inner ear tinnitus. The Company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland. The shares of Auris Medical Holding AG trade on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “EARS.”
Forward-looking Statements
This press release may contain statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements are statements other than historical facts and may include statements that address future operating, financial or business performance or Auris Medical’s strategies or expectations. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may”, “might”, “will”, “should”, “expects”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimates”, “predicts”, “projects”, “potential”, “outlook” or “continue”, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, developments and business decisions to differ materially from those contemplated by these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Auris Medical’s need for and ability to raise substantial additional funding to continue the development of its product candidates, the ability to pursue strategic partnering and non-dilutive funding for its Phase 3 programs, the results of Auris Medical’s review of strategic options and the outcome of any action taken as a result of such review, the timing and conduct of clinical trials of Auris Medical’s product candidates, the clinical utility of Auris Medical’s product candidates, the timing or likelihood of regulatory filings and approvals, Auris Medical’s intellectual property position and Auris Medical’s financial position, including the impact of any future acquisitions, dispositions, partnerships, license transactions or changes to Auris Medical’s capital structure, including future securities offerings. These risks and uncertainties also include, but are not limited to, those described under the caption “Risk Factors” in Auris Medical’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017, and in Auris Medical’s other filings with the SEC, which are available free of charge on the Securities Exchange Commission’s website at: www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated. All forward-looking statements and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to Auris Medical or to persons acting on behalf of Auris Medical are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to these risks and uncertainties. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Auris Medical does not undertake any obligation to update them in light of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable law.
Investor contact:
Joseph Green / Andrew Gibson
Edison Advisors for Auris Medical
646-653-7030 / 7719
jgreen@edisongroup.com / agibson@edisongroup.com
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