In September 2021, we announced the launch of SaponiQx to spearhead innovation in novel adjuvant discovery
and vaccine design, including in relation to our saponin-based adjuvants. We also announced our partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc. to develop SaponiQxs novel saponin products from sustainably sourced raw materials, with a goal to meet the
current demands placed on the vaccine industry for pandemic vaccines. Our QS-21 Stimulon adjuvant is partnered with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and is a key component in multiple GSK vaccine programs.
These programs are in various stages, with the most advanced being GSKs shingles vaccine, Shingrix. In October 2017, GSKs shingles vaccine was approved in the United States by the FDA. In January 2018, we entered into a Royalty Purchase
Agreement with Healthcare Royalty Partners III, L.P. and certain of its affiliates (together, HCR), pursuant to which HCR purchased 100% of our worldwide rights to receive royalties from GSK on GSKs sales of vaccines containing our
QS-21 Stimulon adjuvant. We do not incur clinical development costs for products partnered with GSK. We were also entitled to receive up to $40.35 million in milestone payments from HCR based on sales of
GSKs vaccines as follows: (i) $15.1 million upon reaching $2.0 billion last-twelve-months net sales any time prior to 2024 (the First HCR Milestone) and (ii) $25.25 million upon reaching $2.75 billion
last-twelve-months net sales any time prior to 2026 (the Second HCR Milestone). We received the First HCR Milestone after GSKs net sales of Shingrix for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019 exceeded $2.0 billion, and
we remain eligible to receive the Second HCR Milestone.
Our business activities include product research and development, intellectual property
prosecution, manufacturing, regulatory and clinical affairs, corporate finance and development activities, and support of our collaborations. Our product candidates require clinical trials and approvals from regulatory agencies, as well as
acceptance in the marketplace. Part of our strategy is to develop and commercialize some of our product candidates by continuing our existing arrangements with academic and corporate collaborators and licensees and by entering into new
collaborations.
Our subsidiary MiNK Therapeutics (formerly AgenTus Therapeutics, Inc.) is focused on the development of iNKT cell therapies for the
treatment of cancer and other life-threatening immune-mediated diseases. In October 2021, the FDA cleared the Investigational New Drug application for AGENT-797, an allogeneic iNKT therapy, for the treatment of patients with solid tumor cancers with
AGENT-797 alone and in combination with approved checkpoint antibodies. AGENT-797 is in ongoing clinical trials in hematological malignancies, including multiple myeloma and B cell lymphoma, and viral Acute Respiratory Distress secondary to COVID-19
and influenza with early data readouts in 2021. In October 2021, MiNK Therapeutics completed an initial public offering of 3,333,334 shares of its common stock, trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol INKT, at a
public offering price of $12.00 per share. The gross proceeds from the offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses, were approximately $40.0 million. Subsequently, the underwriters in the initial
public offering exercised their option to acquire an additional 500,000 shares at the public offering price and such shares were delivered on November 3, 2021. MiNK Therapeutics has licensed the INKT technology from Agenus and retains the rights to
develop and expand a proprietary pipeline of engineered CAR-INKTs, TCRs, and INKT bispecific engagers. MiNK has a dedicated leadership and operational team and independent operating governance.
We have incurred losses since our inception. As of September 30, 2021, we had an accumulated deficit of $1.4 billion. We are likely to continue to
incur losses until we become a commercial company generating profits.
During the past five years, we have successfully financed our operations through
income and revenues generated from corporate partnerships, advance royalty sales and issuance of equity. Based on our current plans and projections, we believe our quarter-end cash resources of
$261.5 million at September 30, 2021 will be sufficient to satisfy our liquidity requirements for more than one year from when our financial statements as of and for the period ended September 30, 2021 were issued. We are presently in
partnership, and out licensing discussions and contemplating additional financial transactions that, if consummated, could extend our cash resources substantially beyond 2022.
Management continues to address the Companys liquidity position and has the flexibility to adjust spending as needed in order to preserve liquidity. In
March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we streamlined our organization, which included a headcount reduction, and our CEO, Dr. Garo Armen, elected to receive his base salary in stock rather
than cash through the end of 2020 and the first half of 2021. We continuously evaluate the likelihood of success of our programs. As such, our decisions to continue to fund or eliminate funding of each of our programs are predicated on these
determinations, on an ongoing basis. We are prepared to discontinue funding of any activities that
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