Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2015
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation	MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (f.k.a. Telik, Inc. and referred to herein as “MabVax Therapeutics Holdings” or the “Company”) (OTCQB: MBVX) was incorporated in the state of Delaware on October 20, 1988. On July 8, 2014, Tacoma Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of MabVax Therapeutics Holdings (“Tacoma Corp.”) merged with MabVax Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“MabVax Therapeutics”) pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated May 12, 2014, by and among MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Tacoma Corp. and MabVax Therapeutics, as amended by that certain Amendment No. 1 to the Merger Agreement, dated June 30, 2014, by and among the parties thereto and by that certain Amendment No. 2 to the Merger Agreement, dated July 7, 2014, by and among the parties thereto (such agreement as amended, the “Merger Agreement”; such Merger, the “Merger”). Unless the context otherwise requires, references to “we,” “our,” “us,” or the “Company” in this Annual Report mean MabVax Therapeutics Holdings on a consolidated financial statement basis with our wholly owned subsidiary following the Merger, MabVax Therapeutics, as applicable. On October 9, 2014 FINRA approved The Company’s stock symbol change request and the Company began trading under the symbol MBVX (OTCQB: MBVX) on October 10, 2014. The Company is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of proprietary human monoclonal antibody products and vaccines for the treatment of a variety of cancers. The Company has discovered a pipeline of human monoclonal antibody products based on the protective immune responses generated by patients who have been immunized against targeted cancers. Therapeutic vaccines under development were discovered at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (“MSK”) and are exclusively licensed to MabVax Therapeutics. The Company operates in only one business segment. The Company has incurred net losses since inception and expects to incur substantial losses for the foreseeable future as it continues its research and development activities. To date, the Company has funded operations primarily through government grants, the sale of preferred stock and equity securities, non-equity payments from collaborators and interest income. The process of developing products will require significant additional research and development, preclinical testing and clinical trials, as well as regulatory approvals. The Company expects these activities, together with general and administrative expenses, to result in substantial operating losses for the foreseeable future. The Company will not receive substantial revenue unless the Company or its collaborative partners’ complete clinical trials, obtain regulatory approvals and successfully commercialize one or more products; or the Company licenses its technology after achieving one or more milestones of interest to a potential partner. *Liquidity and Going Concern* The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the going concern basis, which assumes that the Company will continue to operate as a going concern and which contemplates the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities and commitments in the normal course of business. As reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements, the Company had a net loss of $18,105,315, net cash used in operating activities of $10,525,182 and net cash used by investing activities of $78,416, for the year ended December 31, 2015. As of December 31, 2015, the Company had $4,084,085 in cash and cash equivalents and an accumulated deficit of $60,601,778. On March 31, 2015 and April 10, 2015, we closed on a financing transaction by entering into separate subscription agreements with accredited investors relating to the issuance and sale of an aggregate of $11,714,498 of units (the “Units”) at a purchase price of $5.55 per Unit, with each Unit consisting of one share of common stock, par value $0.01 per share (or, at the election of any investor who, as a result of receiving common stock would hold in excess of 4.99% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock, shares of the Company’s newly designated 0% Series E Convertible Preferred Stock) and a thirty-month warrant to purchase one half of one share of common stock at an initial exercise price of $11.10 per share, as further described in the Notes to Financial Statements – Equity, (the “April 2015 Private Placement”). The initial closing of the April 2015 Private Placement took place on March 31, 2015, in which the Company sold an aggregate of $4,995,749 of Units. Following the initial closing The Company entered into separate reconfirmation agreements with the investors in order to extend the initial closing date, increase the offering amount, and adopt a lockup agreement, which was entered by all investors who elected to continue their investment. The second closing was completed on April 10, 2015 for an additional $6,718,751 of Units. The Company issued $2,500,000 of Units consisting of Series E Convertible Preferred Stock on April 10, 2015 and the remainder of Units issued in the April 2015 Private Placement were in the form of common stock Units. Of the total cash received in the second closing on April 10, 2015, $3,500,000 was initially held in escrow under the terms of an escrow agreement with Signature Bank, N.A for a period of 10 weeks pending the approval of a representative of one of the lead investors to release the funds. On June 22, 2015, the Company, Signature Bank, N.A. and OPKO Health, Inc. (“OPKO”) extended the term of the escrow to 16 weeks from the closing of the April 2015 Private Placement. As further consideration for the amendment, on June 30, 2015, the Company and OPKO entered into a letter agreement pursuant to which the Company granted OPKO the right, but not the obligation, until June 30, 2016, to nominate and appoint up to two additional members of the Company’s board of directors (the “Board” or the “Board of Directors”), or to approve the person(s) nominated by the Company pursuant to the agreement in consideration for the release of the escrowed funds. The nominees will be subject to the satisfaction of standard corporate governance practices and any applicable national securities exchange requirements. Upon signing the agreement, the escrowed funds were released to the Company. On October 5, 2015, we closed a public offering of 337,838 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 168,919 shares of common stock, at an offering price of $8.14 per share. For every two shares of common stock sold, the Company issued one warrant to purchase one share of common stock. The Company received $2,750,000 in gross proceeds, before underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses totaling approximately $586,608, and without giving effect to the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering to fund the HuMab-5B1 human antibody program through Phase I clinical development and for working capital and general corporate purposes. The shares and warrants were separately issued and sold in equal proportions. The warrants are immediately exercisable, expire September 30, 2018, and have an exercise price of $9.77 per share. The warrants will not be listed on any securities exchange or other trading market. The underwriters did not exercise a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 50,676 shares of common stock and up to an additional 25,338 warrants at the same price to cover over-allotments, if any. Under the terms of the underwriting agreement entered into between the Company and the underwriter in the public offering, the Company, without the prior written consent of the underwriter, was prohibited, for a period of 90 days after execution of the underwriting agreement, from issuing any equity securities, subject to certain exceptions. On October 12, 2015, the Company and investors holding over 60% of the outstanding Registerable Securities (as such term is defined in the Registration Rights Agreements) issued in the April 2015 Private Placement entered into a third amendment agreement to the Registration Rights Agreements to suspend the Company’s registration obligations under the Registration Rights Agreements and related subscription agreements during any period when the “Standstill” provision set forth in 5(u) of the related subscription agreements is in effect. On January 28, 2016, we filed a registration statement with the SEC; and we gave notification of effectiveness of the registration statement on February 10, 2016. On January 15, 2016, the Company and Oxford Finance LLC, as collateral agent and lender, entered into a Loan and Security Agreement providing for senior secured term loans to the Company in an aggregate principal amount of up to $10,000,000, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Loan Agreement (the “January 2016 Term Loan”). On January 15, 2016, the Company received an initial loan of $5,000,000 under the Loan Agreement, before fees and issuance costs of approximately $381,000. We anticipate that the Company will continue to incur net losses into the foreseeable future as we: (i) initiate in the first quarter 2016 Phase I clinical trials planned for our stand-alone therapeutic HuMab 5b-1 and early in 2016 our PET imaging agent 89Zr-HuMab-5B1, (ii) continue to conduct preclinical efforts on several other programs, and (iii) continue operations as a public company. After giving effect to the net proceeds received from the January 2016 Term Loan, management believes that the Company has sufficient funds to meet its obligations through September 2016. These conditions give rise to substantial doubt as to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The accompanying consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. We plan to continue to fund the Company’s losses from operations and capital funding needs through equity or debt financings, strategic collaborations, licensing arrangements, asset sales, government grants or other arrangements. However, we cannot be sure that such additional funds will be available on reasonable terms, or at all. If we are unable to secure adequate additional funding, we may be forced to make reductions in spending, extend payment terms with suppliers, liquidate assets where possible, and/or suspend or curtail planned programs. In addition, if the Company does not meet its payment obligations to third parties as they come due, it may be subject to litigation claims. Even if we are successful in defending against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management. Any of these actions could materially harm the Company’s business, results of operations, and future prospects. If we raise additional funds by issuing equity securities, substantial dilution to existing stockholders would result. If we raise additional funds by incurring debt financing, the terms of the debt may involve significant cash payment obligations as well as covenants and specific financial ratios that may restrict the Company’s ability to operate its business.

Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation

MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (f.k.a. Telik, Inc. and referred to herein as “MabVax Therapeutics Holdings” or the “Company”) (OTCQB: MBVX) was incorporated in the state of Delaware on October 20, 1988. On July 8, 2014, Tacoma Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of MabVax Therapeutics Holdings (“Tacoma Corp.”) merged with MabVax Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“MabVax Therapeutics”) pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated May 12, 2014, by and among MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Tacoma Corp. and MabVax Therapeutics, as amended by that certain Amendment No. 1 to the Merger Agreement, dated June 30, 2014, by and among the parties thereto and by that certain Amendment No. 2 to the Merger Agreement, dated July 7, 2014, by and among the parties thereto (such agreement as amended, the “Merger Agreement”; such Merger, the “Merger”). Unless the context otherwise requires, references to “we,” “our,” “us,” or the “Company” in this Annual Report mean MabVax Therapeutics Holdings on a consolidated financial statement basis with our wholly owned subsidiary following the Merger, MabVax Therapeutics, as applicable. On October 9, 2014 FINRA approved The Company’s stock symbol change request and the Company began trading under the symbol MBVX (OTCQB: MBVX) on October 10, 2014.

The Company is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of proprietary human monoclonal antibody products and vaccines for the treatment of a variety of cancers. The Company has discovered a pipeline of human monoclonal antibody products based on the protective immune responses generated by patients who have been immunized against targeted cancers. Therapeutic vaccines under development were discovered at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (“MSK”) and are exclusively licensed to MabVax Therapeutics. The Company operates in only one business segment.

The Company has incurred net losses since inception and expects to incur substantial losses for the foreseeable future as it continues its research and development activities. To date, the Company has funded operations primarily through government grants, the sale of preferred stock and equity securities, non-equity payments from collaborators and interest income. The process of developing products will require significant additional research and development, preclinical testing and clinical trials, as well as regulatory approvals. The Company expects these activities, together with general and administrative expenses, to result in substantial operating losses for the foreseeable future. The Company will not receive substantial revenue unless the Company or its collaborative partners’ complete clinical trials, obtain regulatory approvals and successfully commercialize one or more products; or the Company licenses its technology after achieving one or more milestones of interest to a potential partner.

Liquidity and Going Concern

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the going concern basis, which assumes that the Company will continue to operate as a going concern and which contemplates the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities and commitments in the normal course of business. As reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements, the Company had a net loss of $18,105,315, net cash used in operating activities of $10,525,182 and net cash used by investing activities of $78,416, for the year ended December 31, 2015. As of December 31, 2015, the Company had $4,084,085 in cash and cash equivalents and an accumulated deficit of $60,601,778.

On March 31, 2015 and April 10, 2015, we closed on a financing transaction by entering into separate subscription agreements with accredited investors relating to the issuance and sale of an aggregate of $11,714,498 of units (the “Units”) at a purchase price of $5.55 per Unit, with each Unit consisting of one share of common stock, par value $0.01 per share (or, at the election of any investor who, as a result of receiving common stock would hold in excess of 4.99% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock, shares of the Company’s newly designated 0% Series E Convertible Preferred Stock) and a thirty-month warrant to purchase one half of one share of common stock at an initial exercise price of $11.10 per share, as further described in the Notes to Financial Statements – Equity, (the “April 2015 Private Placement”).

The initial closing of the April 2015 Private Placement took place on March 31, 2015, in which the Company sold an aggregate of $4,995,749 of Units. Following the initial closing The Company entered into separate reconfirmation agreements with the investors in order to extend the initial closing date, increase the offering amount, and adopt a lockup agreement, which was entered by all investors who elected to continue their investment. The second closing was completed on April 10, 2015 for an additional $6,718,751 of Units. The Company issued $2,500,000 of Units consisting of Series E Convertible Preferred Stock on April 10, 2015 and the remainder of Units issued in the April

2015 Private Placement were in the form of common stock Units. Of the total cash received in the second closing on April 10, 2015, $3,500,000 was initially held in escrow under the terms of an escrow agreement with Signature Bank, N.A for a period of 10 weeks pending the approval of a representative of one of the lead investors to release the funds. On June 22, 2015, the Company, Signature Bank, N.A. and OPKO Health, Inc. (“OPKO”) extended the term of the escrow to 16 weeks from the closing of the April 2015 Private Placement. As further consideration for the amendment, on June 30, 2015, the Company and OPKO entered into a letter agreement pursuant to which the Company granted OPKO the right, but not the obligation, until June 30, 2016, to nominate and appoint up to two additional members of the Company’s board of directors (the “Board” or the “Board of Directors”), or to approve the person(s) nominated by the Company pursuant to the agreement in consideration for the release of the escrowed funds. The nominees will be subject to the satisfaction of standard corporate governance practices and any applicable national securities exchange requirements. Upon signing the agreement, the escrowed funds were released to the Company.

On October 5, 2015, we closed a public offering of 337,838 shares of common stock and warrants to purchase 168,919 shares of common stock, at an offering price of $8.14 per share. For every two shares of common stock sold, the Company issued one warrant to purchase one share of common stock. The Company received $2,750,000 in gross proceeds, before underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses totaling approximately $586,608, and without giving effect to the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering to fund the HuMab-5B1 human antibody program through Phase I clinical development and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

The shares and warrants were separately issued and sold in equal proportions. The warrants are immediately exercisable, expire September 30, 2018, and have an exercise price of $9.77 per share. The warrants will not be listed on any securities exchange or other trading market. The underwriters did not exercise a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 50,676 shares of common stock and up to an additional 25,338 warrants at the same price to cover over-allotments, if any.

Under the terms of the underwriting agreement entered into between the Company and the underwriter in the public offering, the Company, without the prior written consent of the underwriter, was prohibited, for a period of 90 days after execution of the underwriting agreement, from issuing any equity securities, subject to certain exceptions.

On October 12, 2015, the Company and investors holding over 60% of the outstanding Registerable Securities (as such term is defined in the Registration Rights Agreements) issued in the April 2015 Private Placement entered into a third amendment agreement to the Registration Rights Agreements to suspend the Company’s registration obligations under the Registration Rights Agreements and related subscription agreements during any period when the “Standstill” provision set forth in 5(u) of the related subscription agreements is in effect. On January 28, 2016, we filed a registration statement with the SEC; and we gave notification of effectiveness of the registration statement on February 10, 2016.

On January 15, 2016, the Company and Oxford Finance LLC, as collateral agent and lender, entered into a Loan and Security Agreement providing for senior secured term loans to the Company in an aggregate principal amount of up to $10,000,000, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Loan Agreement (the “January 2016 Term Loan”). On January 15, 2016, the Company received an initial loan of $5,000,000 under the Loan Agreement, before fees and issuance costs of approximately $381,000.

We anticipate that the Company will continue to incur net losses into the foreseeable future as we: (i) initiate in the first quarter 2016 Phase I clinical trials planned for our stand-alone therapeutic HuMab 5b-1 and early in 2016 our PET imaging agent 89Zr-HuMab-5B1, (ii) continue to conduct preclinical efforts on several other programs, and (iii) continue operations as a public company. After giving effect to the net proceeds received from the January 2016 Term Loan, management believes that the Company has sufficient funds to meet its obligations through September 2016. These conditions give rise to substantial doubt as to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The accompanying consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

We plan to continue to fund the Company’s losses from operations and capital funding needs through equity or debt financings, strategic collaborations, licensing arrangements, asset sales, government grants or other arrangements. However, we cannot be sure that such additional funds will be available on reasonable terms, or at all. If we are unable to secure adequate additional funding, we may be forced to make reductions in spending, extend payment terms with suppliers, liquidate assets where possible, and/or suspend or curtail planned programs. In addition, if the Company does not meet its payment obligations to third parties as they come due, it may be subject to litigation claims. Even if we are successful in defending against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management. Any of these actions could materially harm the Company’s business, results of operations, and future prospects.

If we raise additional funds by issuing equity securities, substantial dilution to existing stockholders would result. If we raise additional funds by incurring debt financing, the terms of the debt may involve significant cash payment obligations as well as covenants and specific financial ratios that may restrict the Company’s ability to operate its business.