UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of
The Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 29, 2020
BIOSTAGE, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 001-35853 | 45-5210462 |
|
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) |
| 84 October Hill Road, Suite 11, Holliston, MA | 01746 |
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (774) 233-7300
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: None
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter). Emerging growth company x
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. x
| Item 5.02. | Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers. |
On October 29, 2020, Biostage, Inc. (the “Company”) appointed James Mastridge as interim Vice President of Finance. In such role, Mr. Mastridge will be the Company’s principal accounting officer and principal financial officer. In connection with Mr. Mastridge’s appointment, the Company determined that Peter Chakoutis, the Company’s former Vice President of Finance, who has been on temporary leave of absence for personal reasons, would not be returning to the Company at this time.
Mr. Mastridge, age 54, is a Director of Accounting and Reporting, at Danforth Advisors, LLC (“Danforth”) and has over twenty five years of experience as a finance professional in accounting and reporting roles. Prior to joining Danforth, Mr. Mastridge served as Director of Accounting of Osmotica Pharmaceuticals plc from July 2018 through September 2020, and Director of Accounting & Reporting at Eli Lilly and Company from 2008 to 2017. Mr. Mastridge graduated from Rutgers University with a B.S. in Accounting and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in New Jersey.
The Company entered into a Consulting Agreement (the “Consulting Agreement”) with Danforth, executed on October 6, 2020, pursuant to which Danforth will provide strategic advisory, finance, accounting, human resources and administrative functions to the Company, including the services to be provided by Mr. Mastridge as described above. The Company will pay Danforth an hourly rate of $225.00 per hour for such services and will reimburse Danforth for expenses. The Consulting Agreement’s term continues until either party gives notice of termination. The Consulting Agreement may be terminated by the Company or Danforth with cause, upon 30 days written notice and without cause, upon 60 days written notice.
The foregoing summary of the Consulting Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by, the full text of the Consulting Agreement, filed hereto as Exhibit 10.1.
There are no transactions to which the Company is a party and in which Mr. Mastridge has a material interest that are required to be disclosed under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K. Mr. Mastridge has not previously held any positions with the Company and has no family relationship with any directors or executive officers of the Company.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits
Exhibit | Description | |
| 10.1# | Consulting Agreement, executed October 6, 2020, between Biostage, Inc. and Danforth Advisors, LLC |
# Management contract or compensatory plans or agreements.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| BIOSTAGE, INC. | |||
| (Registrant) | |||
| October 30, 2020 | /s/ Hong Yu | ||
| (Date) | Hong Yu | ||
| President |
EXHIBIT 10.1
CONSULTING AGREEMENT
This Consulting Agreement (the “Agreement”) is made effective as of October 1, 2020 (the “Effective Date”), by and between BioStage, Inc. a Delaware corporation, with its principal place of business being 84 October Hill Rd, Holliston, MA 01746 USA (the “Company”) and Danforth Advisors, LLC, a Massachusetts limited liability corporation, with its principal place of business being 91 Middle Road, Southborough, MA 01772 (“Danforth”). The Company and Danforth are herein sometimes referred to individually as a “Party” and collectively as the “Parties.”
WHEREAS, the Company is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing bioengineered organ implants based on the Company's novel Cellspan™ technology; and
WHEREAS, Danforth has expertise in financial and corporate operations and strategy; and
WHEREAS, Danforth desires to serve as an independent consultant for the purpose of providing the Company with certain strategic and financial advice and support services, as more fully described in Exhibit A attached hereto, (the "Services"); and
WHEREAS, the Company wishes to engage Danforth on the terms and conditions set forth herein.
NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which are hereby acknowledged, the Parties agree and covenant as follows.
| 1. | Services of Consultant. Danforth will assist the Company with matters relating to the Services. The Services are more fully described in Exhibit A attached hereto. Danforth and the Company will review the Services on a monthly basis to prioritize and implement the tasks listed on Exhibit A. |
| 2. | Compensation for Services. In full consideration of Danforth’s full, prompt and faithful performance of the Services, the Company shall compensate Danforth a consulting fee more fully described in Exhibit A (the “Consulting Fee”). Danforth shall, from time to time, but not more frequently than twice per calendar month, invoice the Company for Services rendered, and such invoice will be paid upon 15 days of receipt. Each month the Parties shall evaluate jointly the current fee structure and scope of Services. Danforth reserves the right to an annual increase in consultant rates of up to 4%, effective January 1 of each year. Upon termination of this Agreement pursuant to Section 3, no compensation or benefits of any kind as described in this Section 2 shall be payable or issuable to Danforth after the effective date of such termination. In addition, the Company will reimburse Danforth for reasonable out-of-pocket business expenses, including but not limited to travel and parking, incurred by Danforth in performing the Services hereunder, upon submission by Danforth of supporting documentation reasonably acceptable to the Company. Any such accrued expenses in any given three (3) month period that exceed $1,000 shall be submitted to the Company for its prior written approval. |
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All Danforth invoices and billing matters should be addressed to:
| Company Accounts Payable Contact: | Shunfu Hu Ph.D. | |
| shu@biostage.com | ||
| (774) 233-7341 84 October Hill Rd., Suite 11, Holliston, MA 01746 |
All Company payments and billing inquiries should be addressed to:
| Danforth Accounting: | Betsy Sherr | |
| bsherr@danforthadvisors.com | ||
| (508) 277-0031 | ||
| Danforth Advisors | ||
| PO Box 335 | ||
| Southborough, MA 01772 |
| 3. | Term and Termination. The term of this Agreement will commence on the Effective Date and will continue until such time as either party has given notice of termination pursuant to this paragraph 3 (the “Term”). This Agreement may be terminated by either Party hereto: (a) with Cause (as defined below), upon 30 days prior written notice to the other Party; or (b) without cause upon 60 days prior written notice to the other Party. For purposes of this Section 3, “Cause” shall include: (i) a breach of the terms of this Agreement which is not cured within 30 days of written notice of such default or (ii) the commission of any act of fraud, embezzlement or deliberate disregard of a rule or policy of the Company. |
| 4. | Time Commitment. Danforth will devote such time to perform the Services under this Agreement as may reasonably be required. |
| 5. | Place of Performance. Danforth will perform the Services at such locations upon which the Company and Danforth may mutually agree. Danforth will not, without the prior written consent of the Company, perform any of the Services at any facility or in any manner that might give anyone other than the Company any rights to or allow for disclosure of any Confidential Information (as defined below). |
| 6. | Compliance with Policies and Guidelines. Danforth will perform the Services in accordance with all rules or policies adopted by the Company that the Company discloses in writing to Danforth. |
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| 7. | Confidential Information. Danforth acknowledges and agrees that during the course of performing the Services, the Company may furnish, disclose or make available to Danforth information, including, but not limited to, material, compilations, data, formulae, models, patent disclosures, procedures, processes, business plans, projections, protocols, results of experimentation and testing, specifications, strategies and techniques, and all tangible and intangible embodiments thereof of any kind whatsoever (including, but not limited to, any apparatus, biological or chemical materials, animals, cells, compositions, documents, drawings, machinery, patent applications, records and reports), which is owned or controlled by the Company and is marked or designated as confidential at the time of disclosure or is of a type that is customarily considered to be confidential information (collectively the “Confidential Information"). Danforth acknowledges that the Confidential Information or any part thereof is the exclusive property of the Company and shall not be disclosed to any third party without first obtaining the written consent of the Company. Danforth further agrees to take all practical steps to ensure that the Confidential Information, and any part thereof, shall not be disclosed or issued to its affiliates, agents or employees, except on like terms of confidentiality. The above provisions of confidentiality shall apply for a period of five years. The Company agrees to permit the use of its name and logo in a roster of Danforth clients, which may appear on the Danforth website and in its marketing materials. |
| 8. | Intellectual Property. Danforth agrees that all ideas, inventions, discoveries, creations, manuscripts, properties, innovations, improvements, know-how, designs, developments, apparatus, techniques, methods, and formulae that Danforth conceives, makes, develops or improves as a result of performing the Services, whether or not reduced to practice and whether or not patentable, alone or in conjunction with any other party and whether or not at the request or upon the suggestion of the Company (all of the foregoing being hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Inventions”), shall be the sole and exclusive property of the Company. Danforth hereby agrees in consideration of the Company’s agreement to engage Danforth and pay compensation for the Services rendered to the Company and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged that Danforth shall not, without the prior written consent of the Company, directly or indirectly, consult for, or become an employee of, any company which conducts business in the Field of Interest anywhere in the world. As used herein, the term “Field of Interest” shall mean the research, development, manufacture and/or sale of the products resulting from the Company’s technology. The limitations on competition contained in this Section 8 shall continue during the time that Danforth performs any Services for the Company, and for a period of three months following the termination of any such Services that Danforth performs for the Company. If any part of this section should be determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to be unreasonable in duration, geographic area, or scope, then this Section 8 is intended to and shall extend only for such period of time, in such area and with respect to such activity as is determined to be reasonable. Except as expressly provided herein, nothing in this Agreement shall preclude Danforth from consulting for or being employed by any other person or entity. |
| 9. | Non Solicitation. All personnel representing Danforth are employees or contracted agents of Danforth. Accordingly, they are not retainable as employees or contractors by the Company and the Company hereby agrees not to solicit, hire or retain their services for so long as they are employees or contracted agents of Danforth and for two years thereafter. Should the Company violate this restriction, it agrees to pay Danforth liquidated damages equal to thirty 30% of the employee’s starting annual base salary and target annual bonus for each Danforth contracted agent hired by the Company in violation of this Agreement, plus Danforth’s reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs incurred in enforcing this agreement should the Company fail or refuse to pay the liquidated damages amount in full within 30 days following its violation. |
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| 10. | Placement Services. In the event that Danforth refers a potential employee to the Company and that individual is hired, Danforth shall receive a fee equal to 20% of the employee’s starting annual base salary and target annual bonus. This fee is due and owing whether an individual is hired, directly or indirectly on a permanent basis or on a contract or consulting basis by the Company, as a result of Danforth’s efforts within one year of the date applicant(s) are submitted to the Company. Such payment is due within 30 days of the employee’s start date. |
| 11. | No Implied Warranty. Except for any express warranties stated herein, the Services are provided on an "as is" basis, and the Company disclaims any and all other warranties, conditions, or representations (express, implied, oral or written), relating to the Services or any part thereof. Further, in performing the Services Danforth is not engaged to disclose illegal acts, including fraud or defalcations, which may have taken place. The foregoing notwithstanding, Danforth will promptly notify the Company if Danforth becomes aware of any such illegal acts during the performance of the Services. Because the Services do not constitute an examination in accordance with standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (the “AICPA”), Danforth is precluded from expressing an opinion as to whether financial statements provided by the Company are in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles or any other standards or guidelines promulgated by the AICPA, or whether the underlying financial and other data provide a reasonable basis for the statements. |
| 12. | Indemnification. Each Party hereto agrees to indemnify and hold the other Party hereto, its directors, officers, agents and employees harmless against any claim based upon circumstances alleged to be inconsistent with such representations and/or warranties contained in this Agreement. Further, the Company shall indemnify and hold harmless Danforth and any of its subcontractors against any claims, losses, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) that arise out of or are based on the Services performed hereunder, except for any such claims, losses, damages or liabilities arising out of the gross negligence or willful misconduct of Danforth or any of its subcontractors. The Company will endeavor to add Consultant and any applicable subcontractor to its insurance policies as additional insureds. Furthermore, during the Term of this Agreement, Company shall maintain a Crime and Cyber Insurance Policy that includes coverage for "Social Engineering" claims and extends coverage to Danforth. |
| 13. | Independent Contractor. Danforth is not, nor shall Danforth be deemed to be at any time during the term of this Agreement, an employee of the Company, and therefore Danforth shall not be entitled to any benefits provided by the Company to its employees, if applicable. Danforth’s status and relationship with the Company shall be that of an independent contractor and consultant. Danforth shall not state or imply, directly or indirectly, that Danforth is empowered to bind the Company without the Company's prior written consent. Nothing herein shall create, expressly or by implication, a partnership, joint venture or other association between the parties. Danforth will be solely responsible for payment of all charges and taxes arising from his or her relationship to the Company as a consultant. |
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| 14. | Records. Upon termination of Danforth’s relationship with the Company, Danforth shall deliver to the Company any property or Confidential Information of the Company relating to the Services which may be in its possession including products, project plans, materials, memoranda, notes, records, reports, laboratory notebooks, or other documents or photocopies and any such information stored using electronic medium. |
| 15. | Notices. Any notice under this Agreement shall be in writing (except in the case of verbal communications, emails and teleconferences updating either Party as to the status of work hereunder) and shall be deemed delivered upon personal delivery, one day after being sent via a reputable nationwide overnight courier service or two days after deposit in the mail or on the next business day following transmittal via facsimile. Notices under this Agreement shall be sent to the following representatives of the Parties: |
| If to the Company: | ||
| Name: | Shunfu Hu Ph.D. | |
| Title: | VP of Business Development & Operations | |
| Address: | 84 October Hill Rd., Suite 11, Holliston, MA 01746 USA | |
| Phone: | (774) 233-7341 | |
| E-mail: | shu@biostage.com | |
| If to Danforth: | ||
| Name: | Gregg Beloff | |
| Title: | Managing Director | |
| Address: | 91 Middle Road | |
| Southborough, MA 01772 | ||
| Phone: | (617) 686-7679 | |
| E-mail: | gbeloff@danforthadvisors.com |
| 16. | Assignment and Successors. This Agreement may not be assigned by a Party without the consent of the other which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, except that each Party may assign this Agreement and the rights, obligations and interests of such Party, in whole or in part, to any of its Affiliates, to any purchaser of all or substantially all of its assets or to any successor corporation resulting from any merger or consolidation of such Party with or into such corporation. |
| 17. | Force Majeure. Neither Party shall be liable for failure of or delay in performing obligations set forth in this Agreement, and neither shall be deemed in breach of its obligations, if such failure or delay is due to natural disasters or any causes beyond the reasonable control of either Party. In the event of such force majeure, the Party affected thereby shall use reasonable efforts to cure or overcome the same and resume performance of its obligations hereunder. |
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| 18. | Headings. The Section headings are intended for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be a part of or to affect the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement. |
| 19. | Integration; Severability. This Agreement is the sole agreement with respect to the subject matter hereof and shall supersede all other agreements and understandings between the Parties with respect to the same. If any provision of this Agreement is or becomes invalid or is ruled invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction or is deemed unenforceable, it is the intention of the Parties that the remainder of the Agreement shall not be affected. |
| 20. | Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, excluding choice of law principles. The Parties agree that any action or proceeding arising out of or related in any way to this Agreement shall be brought solely in a Federal or State court of competent jurisdiction sitting in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. |
| 21. | Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in counterparts, each of which will be deemed an original, but all of which together will constitute one agreement. |
If you are in agreement with the foregoing, please sign where indicated below, whereupon this Agreement shall become effective as of the Effective Date.
| DANFORTH ADVISORS, LLC | BIOSTAGE, INC. | |||
| By: | /s/ Chris Connors | By: | /s/ Shunfu Hu Ph.D. | |
| Print Name: | Chris Connors | Print Name: | Shunfu Hu Ph.D. | |
| Title: | President | Title: | VP of Business Development | |
| Date: | October 1, 2020 | Date: | October 6, 2020 | |
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EXHIBIT A
Description of Services and Schedule of Fees
Danforth will perform mutually agreed to finance and accounting functions which are necessary to support the management and operations of the Company, certain of which are set forth below.
The initial staffing for this engagement shall be as follows:
Sr. Manager /James Mastridge/ $225 per hour:
| • | Assistance with drafting, filing, signing and execution as principal accounting and principal financial officer of filings with the SEC including without limitation forms 8-k 10-Q and 10-K for the service. |
| • | Maintain an appropriate accounting system and general ledger, likely on QuickBooks |
| • | Regular bookkeeping and accounting activities--- monthly close, monthly reporting, and general financial administration |
| • | Establish and perform procedures for setting up new vendors (contracts, W-9s) and paying monthly invoices; manage payables and cash disbursements |
| • | Reconcile cash accounts, track cash usage and prepare cash flow projections |
| • | Establish reporting template and perform monthly reporting (internal and external) |
| • | Establish/maintain internal controls |
| • | Work with the Company management team to prepare operating plans and budgets |
| • | Input of budget in QuickBooks for variance analysis |
| • | Manage insurance and banking |
| • | Establish and manage payroll and employee benefits |
| • | Monthly payroll/benefits administration (if applicable) |
| • | Update and manage the Company’s capitalization table |
| • | Financing, audit, budget, payroll/workers comp set up or other special project(s), as required and requested |
| • | Provide support for fundraising initiatives |
| • | Assist with tax returns, as appropriate |
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