In December 2020, the Company entered into a royalty purchase agreement (the Royalty Purchase Agreement) with HCR. Under the agreement, HCR purchased the Company’s rights to a capped amount of Zolgensma royalty payments under the Company’s license agreement with Novartis Gene Therapies, including $4.0 million of royalty payments received by the Company in the fourth quarter of 2020 (the Pledged Royalties). In consideration for these rights, HCR paid the Company $200.0 million (the Purchase Price), less $4.0 million representing the payment of the Pledged Royalties to HCR. Beginning upon the effective date of the agreement, Zolgensma royalty payments, up to a specified threshold, will be paid to HCR, net of upstream royalties payable by the Company to certain licensors in accordance with existing license agreements.

Pursuant to the Royalty Purchase Agreement, the total amount of royalty payments to be received by HCR under the agreement is subject to an increasing cap (the Cap Amount) equal to (i) $260.0 million applicable for the period from the effective date of the agreement through November 7, 2024, and (ii) $300.0 million applicable for the period from November 8, 2024 through the effective date of termination of the license agreement with Novartis Gene Therapies. If, on or prior to the defined dates for each Cap Amount, the total amount of royalty payments received by HCR equals or exceeds the Cap Amount applicable to such date, the Royalty Purchase Agreement will automatically terminate and all rights to the Zolgensma royalty payments will revert back to the Company. The Company has no obligation to repay any amounts to HCR if total future Zolgensma royalty payments are not sufficient to achieve the applicable Cap Amount prior to the termination of the license agreement with Novartis Gene Therapies.

The Company has a call option to repurchase its rights to the purchased royalties from HCR for a repurchase price equal to, as of the option exercise date, $300.0 million minus the total amount of royalty payments received by HCR; provided, however, that with respect to a call option exercised on or before November 7, 2024, in the event that the then applicable Cap Amount minus the total amount of royalty payments received by HCR is less than $1.0 million, the repurchase price shall equal such difference.

The proceeds received from HCR of $196.0 million were recorded as a liability, net of transaction costs of $3.5 million, which is amortized over the estimated life of the arrangement using the effective interest method. In order to determine the amortization of the liability, the Company is required to estimate the total amount of future royalty payments to be received by HCR, subject to the Cap Amount, over the life of the arrangement. The total amount of royalty payments received by HCR under the agreement, less the net proceeds received by the Company of $192.5 million, is recorded as interest expense over the life of the arrangement using the effective interest method. Due to its continuing involvement in the underlying license agreement with Novartis Gene Therapies, the Company continues to recognize royalty revenue on net sales of Zolgensma and records the royalty payments to HCR as a reduction of the liability when paid. As such payments are made to HCR, the balance of the liability will be effectively repaid over the life of the Royalty Purchase Agreement.

The Company estimates the effective interest rate used to record interest expense under the Royalty Purchase Agreement based on its estimate of future royalty payments to be received by HCR. As of December 31, 2021, the estimated effective interest rate under the agreement was 15.1%. Over the life of the arrangement, the actual effective interest rate will be affected by the amount and timing of the royalty payments received by HCR and changes in the Company’s forecasted royalties. At each reporting date, the Company reassesses its estimate of total future royalty payments to be received by HCR at the applicable Cap Amount, and prospectively adjusts the effective interest rate and amortization of the liability as necessary.

The following table presents the changes in the liability related to the sale of future royalties under the Royalty Purchase Agreement with HCR (in thousands):

	Liability Related to
	Sale of Future Royalties
Proceeds from sale of future royalties in December 2020	$	196,000
Deferred transaction costs		(3,473	)
Interest expense recognized		771
Balance at December 31, 2020		193,298
Zolgensma royalties paid to HCR		(48,226	)
Interest expense recognized		26,277
Balance at December 31, 2021		171,349
Current portion of liability related to sale of future royalties		(37,889	)
Liability related to sale of future royalties, non-current	$	133,460