MESOBLAST LTD [MESO] Filings

20-F 1 meso-20f_20210630.htm 20-F meso-20f_20210630.htm

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

☐	REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

☒	ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021

☐	TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

☐	SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of event requiring this shell company report

For the transition period from to

Commission file number 001-37626

MESOBLAST LIMITED

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

N/A

(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)

AUSTRALIA

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

Level 38, 55 Collins Street

Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia

Telephone: +61 (3) 9639 6036

(Address of principal executive offices)

Silviu Itescu

Chief Executive Officer

Telephone: +61 (3) 9639 6036; Fax: +61 (3) 9639 6030

Level 38, 55 Collins Street

Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act.

Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
American Depositary Shares, each representing five Ordinary Shares*	MESO	The NASDAQ Global Select Market

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act.

None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act.

None

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.

648,696,070 Ordinary Shares

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

☒ Yes ☐ No

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

☐ Yes ☒ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).

☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):


Large accelerated filer	☒	Accelerated filer	☐	Non-accelerated filer	☐
				Emerging growth company	☐

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, 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. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.☒

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

U.S. GAAP

☐

International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International

Accounting Standards Board

☒

Other

☐

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.

Item 17 ☐ Item 18 ☐

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

☐ Yes ☒ No

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION AND USE OF CERTAIN TERMS			2
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS			3
PART I			5
	Item 1.	Identity of Directors, Senior Management	5
	Item 2.	Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable	5
	Item 3.	Key Information	5
	3.A	Selected Financial Data	5
	3.B	Capitalization and Indebtedness	5
	3.C	Reasons for the offer and use of proceeds	5
	3.D	Risk Factors	5
	Item 4.	Information on the Company	40
	4.A	History and Development of Mesoblast	40
	4.B	Business Overview	43
	4.C	Organizational Structure	65
	4.D	Property, Plants and Equipment	65
	Item 4A.	Unresolved Staff Comments	65
	Item 5.	Operating and Financial Review and Prospects	65
	5.A	Operating Results	66
	5.B	Liquidity and Capital Resources	76
	5.C	Research and Development, Patents and Licenses	79
	5.D	Trend Information	79
	5.E	Critical Accounting Estimates	79
	Item 6.	Directors, Senior Management and Employees	80
	6.A	Directors and Senior Management	83
	6.B	Compensation	89
	6.C	Board Practices	110
	6.D	Employees	112
	6.E	Share Ownership	113
	Item 7.	Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions	114
	7.A	Major Shareholders	114
	7.B	Related Party Transactions	114
	7.C	Interests of Experts and Counsel	114
	Item 8.	Financial Information	115
	8.A	Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information	115
	8.B	Significant Changes	115
	Item 9.	The Offer and Listing	115
	9.A	Offer and Listing Details	115
	9.B	Plan of Distribution	115
	9.C	Markets	115
	9.D	Selling Shareholders	115
	9.E	Dilution	115
	9.F	Expenses of the Issue	116

	Item 10.	Additional Information	116
	10.A	Share Capital	116
	10.B	Memorandum and Articles of Association	116
	10.C	Material Contracts	121
	10.D	Exchange Controls	124
	10.E	Taxation	125
	10.F	Dividends and Paying Agents	132
	10.G	Statement by Experts	132
	10.H	Documents on Display	132
	10.I	Subsidiary Information	133
	Item 11.	Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk	133
	Item 12.	Description of Securities Other than Equity Securities	133
	12.A	Debt Securities	133
	12.B	Warrants and Rights	133
	12.C	Other Securities	133
	12.D	American Depositary Shares	133
PART II			134
	Item 13.	Defaults, Dividend Arrearages and Delinquencies	134
	Item 14.	Material Modifications to the Rights of Security Holders and Use of Proceeds	134
	Item 15.	Controls and Procedures	134
	Item 16A.	Audit Committee Financial Expert	134
	Item 16B.	Code of Ethics	135
	Item 16C.	Principal Accountant Fees and Services	135
	Item 16D.	Exemptions from the Listing Standards for Audit Committees	135
	Item 16E.	Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers	135
	Item 16F.	Change in Registrant’s Certifying Accountant	135
	Item 16G.	Corporate Governance	135
	Item 16H.	Mine Safety Disclosure	136
PART III			136
	Item 17.	Financial Statements	136
	Item 18.	Financial Statements	136
	Item 19.	Exhibits	214
SIGNATURES			216

INTRODUCTION AND USE OF CERTAIN TERMS

Mesoblast Limited and its consolidated subsidiaries publish consolidated financial statements expressed in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated. This Annual Report on Form 20-F is presented in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated. Our consolidated financial statements found in Item 18 of this annual report on Form 20-F are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and Australian equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board.

Except where the context requires otherwise and for purposes of this Form 20-F only:

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“ADSs” refers to our American depositary shares, each of which represents ordinary shares, and “ADRs” refers to the American depositary receipts that evidence our ADSs.

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“Mesoblast,” “we,” “us” or “our” refer to Mesoblast Limited and its subsidiaries.

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“A$” or “Australian dollar” refers to the legal currency of Australia.

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“AIFRS” refers to the Australian equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board, or AASB.

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“CHF” refers to the legal currency of Switzerland.

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“FDA” refers to the United States Food and Drug Administration.

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“GBP” refers to the legal currency of the United Kingdom.

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“IFRS” refers to the International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, or IASB.

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“S$” or “SGD” or “Singapore dollar” refers to the legal currency of Singapore.

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“U.S. GAAP” refers to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States.

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“US$” or “U.S. dollars” refers to the legal currency of the United States.

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“U.S.” or “United States” refers to the United States of America.

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“€” or “Euro” refers to the legal currency of the European Union.

Australian Disclosure Requirements

Our ordinary shares are primarily quoted on the Australian Securities Exchange (“ASX”) in addition to our listing of our ADSs on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. As part of our ASX listing, we are required to comply with various disclosure requirements as set out under the Australian Corporations Act 2001 and the ASX Listing Rules. Information furnished under the sub-heading “Australian Disclosure Requirements” is intended to comply with ASX listing and Corporations Act 2001 disclosure requirements and is not intended to fulfill information required by this Annual Report on Form 20-F.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Form 20-F includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are based on our current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about the Company, our industry, economic conditions in the markets in which we operate, and certain other matters. These statements include, among other things, the discussions of our business strategy and expectations concerning our market position, future operations, margins, profitability, liquidity and capital resources. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Words such as, but not limited to, “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “target,” “likely,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should”, “may”, “goal,” “objective” and similar expressions or phrases identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operation, business strategy and financial needs. Forward- looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about:

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the initiation, timing, progress and results of our preclinical and clinical studies, and our research and development programs;

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our ability to advance product candidates into, enroll and successfully complete, clinical studies, including multi-national clinical trials;

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our ability to advance our manufacturing capabilities;

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the timing or likelihood of regulatory filings and approvals, manufacturing activities and product marketing activities, if any;

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our ability to take advantage of the potential benefits of the 21st Century Cures Act;

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the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic could have on business operations;

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the commercialization of our product candidates, if approved;

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regulatory or public perceptions and market acceptance surrounding the use of cell based therapies;

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the potential for our product candidates, if any are approved, to be withdrawn from the market due to patient adverse events or deaths;

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the potential benefits of strategic collaboration agreements and our ability to enter into and maintain established strategic collaborations;

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our ability to establish and maintain intellectual property on our product candidates and our ability to successfully defend these in cases of alleged infringement;

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the scope of protection we are able to establish and maintain for intellectual property rights covering our product candidates and technology;

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our ability to obtain additional financing;

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estimates of our expenses, future revenues, capital requirements and our needs for additional financing;

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our financial performance;

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developments relating to our competitors and our industry;

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the pricing and reimbursement of our product candidates, if approved; and

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other risks and uncertainties, including those listed under the caption “Risk Factors”.

You should read thoroughly this Form 20-F and the documents that we refer to herein with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and/or worse than what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements. Other sections of this Form 20-F include additional factors which could adversely impact our business and financial performance. Moreover, we operate in an evolving environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible for our management to predict all risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.

This Form 20-F also contains third-party data relating to the biopharmaceutical market that includes projections based on a number of assumptions. The biopharmaceutical market may not grow at the rates projected by market data, or at all. The failure of this market to grow at the projected rates may have a material adverse effect on our business and the market price of our ordinary shares and ADSs. Furthermore, if any one or more of the assumptions underlying the market data turns out to be incorrect, actual results may differ from the projections based on these assumptions. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The forward-looking statements made in this Form 20-F relate only to events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this Form 20-F. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

PART I

Item 1.

Identity of Directors, Senior Management

Not applicable.

Item 2.

Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable

Not applicable.

Item 3.

Key Information

3.A	Selected Financial Data

Not applicable.

3.B	Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

3.C	Reasons for the offer and use of proceeds

Not applicable.

3.D	Risk Factors

You should carefully consider the risks described below and all other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 20-F before making an investment decision. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our ordinary shares and ADSs could decline, and you may lose part or all of your investment. This Annual Report on Form 20-F also contains forward-looking information that involves risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of many factors, including the risks described below and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 20-F.

Risks Related to Our Financial Position and Capital Requirements

We have incurred operating losses since our inception and anticipate that we will continue to incur substantial operating losses for the foreseeable future. We may never achieve or sustain profitability.

We are a clinical-stage biotechnology company and we have not yet generated significant revenues. We have incurred net losses during most of our fiscal periods since our inception. Our net loss for the year ended June 30, 2021 was $98.8 million. As of June 30, 2021, we have an accumulated deficit of $647.6 million since our inception. We do not know whether or when we will become profitable. Our losses have resulted principally from costs incurred in clinical development and manufacturing activities.

We anticipate that our expenses will increase as we move toward commercialization, including the scaling up of our manufacturing activities and our establishment of infrastructure and logistics necessary to support potential product launches. Biopharmaceutical product development is a highly speculative undertaking and involves a substantial degree of risk. To achieve and maintain profitability, we must successfully develop our product candidates, obtain regulatory approval, and manufacture, market and sell those products for which we obtain regulatory approval. If we obtain regulatory approval to market a product candidate, our future revenue will depend upon the size of any markets in which our product candidates may receive approval, and our ability to achieve and maintain sufficient market acceptance, pricing, reimbursement from third-party payors, and adequate market share for our product candidates in those markets. We may not succeed in these activities, and we may never generate revenue from product sales that is significant enough to achieve profitability. Our failure to become or remain profitable would depress our market value and could impair our ability to raise capital, expand our business, discover or develop other product candidates or continue our operations. A decline in the value of our company could cause you to lose part or all of your investment.

We have never generated revenue from product sales and may never be profitable.

Our ability to generate revenue and achieve profitability depends on our ability, either alone or with strategic collaboration partners, to successfully complete the development of, and obtain the regulatory approvals necessary to commercialize, our product candidates. We do not currently generate revenues from product sales (other than licensing revenue from sales of TEMCELL® HS.

Inj. (“TEMCELL”), a registered trademark of JCR Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. (“JCR”), by JCR in Japan, and royalty revenue from net sales of Alofisel® a registered trademark of TiGenix NV (“TiGenix”), previously known as Cx601, an adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cell product developed by TiGenix, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (“Takeda”) and approved for marketing in the EU), and we may never generate product sales. Our ability to generate future revenues from product sales depends heavily on our success in a number of areas, including:

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completing research, preclinical and clinical development of our product candidates;

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seeking and obtaining regulatory and marketing approvals for product candidates for which we complete clinical studies;

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establishing and maintaining supply and manufacturing relationships with third parties that can provide adequate (in amount and quality) products and services to support clinical development and the market demand for our product candidates, if approved;

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launching and commercializing product candidates for which we obtain regulatory and marketing approval, either by collaborating with a partner or, if launched independently, by establishing commercial and distribution capabilities necessary to effectively seek and maintain market access and ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements relating to interactions with healthcare providers, healthcare organizations and government agencies;

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obtaining market acceptance of our product candidates as viable treatment options;

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addressing competing technological and market developments;

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obtaining and sustaining an adequate level of reimbursement from payors;

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identifying and validating new cell therapy product candidates;

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negotiating favorable terms in any collaboration, licensing or other arrangements into which we may enter;

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maintaining, protecting and expanding our portfolio of intellectual property rights, including patents, trade secrets, know-how and trademarks;

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attracting, hiring and retaining qualified personnel; and

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implementing additional internal systems and infrastructure, as needed.

Even if one or more of the product candidates that we develop is approved for commercial sale, we anticipate incurring significant costs associated with commercializing and distributing any approved product candidate. Our expenses could increase beyond expectations if we are required by the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”), or other regulatory agencies, to perform clinical and other studies in addition to those that we currently anticipate. We may not become profitable and may need to obtain additional funding to continue operations.

We require substantial additional financing to achieve our goals, and our failure to obtain this necessary capital or establish and maintain strategic partnerships to provide funding support for our development programs could force us to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our product development or commercialization efforts.

Our operations have consumed substantial amounts of cash since inception. As of June 30, 2021, our cash and cash equivalents were $136.9 million. We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and increase our cumulative operating losses for the foreseeable future in connection with our planned research, development and product commercialization efforts. In addition, we will require additional financing to achieve our goals and our failure to do so could adversely affect our commercialization efforts. We anticipate that our expenses will increase if and as we:

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continue the research and clinical development of our product candidates, including MPC-150-IM (Class II-IV Chronic Heart Failure (“CHF”)), MPC-06-ID (Chronic Low Back Pain (“CLBP”)), remestemcel-L and MPC-300-IV (inflammatory conditions) product candidates;

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seek to identify, assess, acquire, and/or develop other and combination product candidates and technologies;

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seek regulatory and marketing approvals in multiple jurisdictions for our product candidates that successfully complete clinical studies and identify and apply for regulatory designations to facilitate development and ultimate commercialization of our products;

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establish and maintain collaborations and strategic partnerships with third parties for the development and commercialization of our product candidates, or otherwise build and maintain a sales, marketing and distribution infrastructure and/or external logistics to commercialize any products for which we may obtain marketing approval;

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further develop and implement our proprietary manufacturing processes in both planar technology and our bioreactor programs and expand our manufacturing capabilities and resources for commercial production;

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seek coverage and reimbursement from third-party payors, including government and private payors for future products;

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make milestone or other payments under our agreements pursuant to which we have licensed or acquired rights to intellectual property and technology;

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seek to maintain, protect and expand our intellectual property portfolio;

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seek to attract and retain skilled personnel; and

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develop the compliance and other infrastructure necessary to support product commercialization and distribution.

If we were to experience any delays or encounter issues with any of the above, including clinical holds, failed studies, inconclusive or complex results, safety or efficacy issues, or other regulatory challenges that require longer follow-up of existing studies, additional studies, or additional supportive studies in order to pursue marketing approval, it could further increase the costs associated with the above. Further, the net operating losses we incur may fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter and year to year, such that a period-to-period comparison of our results of operations may not be a good indication of our future performance.

To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, your ownership interest may be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect your rights as a shareholder or as a holder of the ADSs. Debt financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take certain actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends. If we raise additional funds through strategic collaborations or partnerships, or marketing, distribution or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may be required to do so at an earlier stage than would otherwise be ideal and/or may have to limit valuable rights to our intellectual property, technologies, product candidates or future revenue streams, or grant licenses or other rights on terms that are not favorable to us. Furthermore, any additional fundraising efforts may divert our management from their day-to-day activities, which may adversely affect our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates.

The terms of our loan facilities with Hercules Capital, Inc. (“Hercules”) and NovaQuest Capital Management, L.L.C. (“NovaQuest”) could restrict our operations, particularly our ability to respond to changes in our business or to take specified actions.

On March 6, 2018, we entered into a loan and security agreement with Hercules, for a $75.0 million non-dilutive, four-year credit facility. We drew the first tranche of $35.0 million at closing, and we have subsequently drawn a further $15.0 million. On June 29, 2018, we entered into a loan and security agreement with NovaQuest for a $40.0 million non-dilutive, eight-year term credit facility, repayable from net sales of our allogeneic product candidate remestemcel-L in pediatric patients with steroid-refractory acute graft versus host disease (“SR-aGVHD”), in the United States and other geographies excluding Asia. We drew the first tranche of $30.0 million on closing. Our loan facilities with Hercules and NovaQuest contain a number of covenants that impose operating restrictions on us, which may restrict our ability to respond to changes in our business or take specified actions. The Group has an operating objective to at all times maintain unrestricted cash reserves in excess of six months liquidity. This objective aligns with our loan and security agreement with Hercules where we are obliged to maintain certain levels of cash in the United States, and a minimum unrestricted cash balance equal to the lessor of: four months liquidity (defined as the prior four calendar months net cash outflows in operating activities and investing activities, excluding amounts for extraordinary, non-recurring, not regularly scheduled or onetime proceeds and amounts) plus any balance of accounts payable not paid after the 120th day following the invoice date for such accounts payable; and the outstanding loan balance. Our ability to comply with the various covenants under the agreements may be affected by events beyond our control, and we may not be able to continue to meet the covenants. Upon the occurrence of an event of default, Hercules or NovaQuest could elect to declare all amounts outstanding under the loan facility to be immediately due and payable and terminate all commitments to extend further credit. If Hercules or NovaQuest accelerates the repayment, if any, we may not have sufficient funds to repay our existing debt. In addition, in August 2021, we entered into a contractual arrangement with Hercules that extended the interest-only period of the Hercules debt facility to January 1, 2022. Accordingly, as from that date, we are expected to repay the principal amount drawn under such debt facility through to facility expiry in March 2022. Although we intend to refinance this debt, we may not be successful in obtaining refinancing terms that are acceptable. If we were unable to repay the owed amounts, Hercules or NovaQuest could proceed against the collateral granted to it to secure such indebtedness. We have pledged substantially all of our assets as collateral under the loan facility with Hercules, and a portion of our assets relating to the SR-aGVHD product candidate as collateral under the loan facility with NovaQuest.

We are subject to risks associated with currency fluctuations, and changes in foreign currency exchange rates could impact our results of operations.

Historically, a substantial portion of our operating expenses has been denominated in U.S. dollars and our main currency requirements are U.S. dollars, Australian dollars and Singapore dollars. Approximately 89% of our cash and cash equivalents as of June 30, 2021 were denominated in U.S. dollars and 11% were denominated in Australian dollars. Because we have multiple functional currencies across different jurisdictions, changes in the exchange rate between these currencies and the foreign currencies of the transactions recorded in our accounts could materially impact our reported results of operations and distort period-to-period

comparisons. For example, a portion of our research and clinical trials are undertaken in Australia. As such, payment will be made in Australian dollar currency, and may exceed the budgeted expenditure if there are adverse currency fluctuations against the U.S. dollar.

More specifically, if we decide to convert our Australian dollars into U.S. dollars for any business purpose, appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the Australian dollar would have a negative effect on the U.S. dollar amount available to us. Appreciation or depreciation in the value of the Australian dollar relative to the U.S. dollar would affect our financial results reported in U.S. dollar terms without giving effect to any underlying change in our business or results of operations. As a result of such foreign currency fluctuations, it could be more difficult to detect underlying trends in our business and results of operations.

Unfavorable global economic or political conditions could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Our results of operations could be adversely affected by general conditions in the global economy and in the global financial markets. A global financial crisis or a global or regional political disruption could cause extreme volatility in the capital and credit markets. A severe or prolonged economic downturn or political disruption could result in a variety of risks to our business, including weakened demand for our product candidates, if approved, and our ability to raise additional capital when needed on acceptable terms, if at all. A weak or declining economy or political disruption could also strain our manufacturers or suppliers, possibly resulting in supply disruption. Any of the foregoing could harm our business and we cannot anticipate all of the ways in which the political or economic climate and financial market conditions could adversely impact our business.

Risks Related to Clinical Development and Regulatory Review and Approval of Our Product Candidates

Our product candidates are based on our novel mesenchymal lineage cell technology, which makes it difficult to accurately and reliably predict the time and cost of product development and subsequently obtaining regulatory approval. At the moment, no industrially manufactured, non-hematopoietic, allogeneic cell products have been approved in the United States.

Other than with respect to sales of products by our licensees, we have not commercially marketed, distributed or sold any products. The success of our business depends on our ability to develop and commercialize our lead product candidates. We have concentrated our product research and development efforts on our mesenchymal lineage cell platform, a novel type of cell therapy. Our future success depends on the successful development of this therapeutic approach. There can be no assurance that any development problems we experience in the future related to our mesenchymal lineage cell platform will not cause significant delays or unanticipated costs, or that such development problems can be solved. We may also experience delays in developing sustainable, reproducible and scalable manufacturing processes or transferring these processes to collaborators, which may prevent us from completing our clinical studies or commercializing our products on a timely or profitable basis, if at all.

In addition, the clinical study requirements of the FDA, the EMA and other regulatory agencies and the criteria these regulators use to determine the safety and efficacy of a product candidate vary substantially according to the type, complexity, novelty and intended use and market of the potential product candidates. The regulatory approval process for novel product candidates such as ours can be more expensive and take longer to develop than for other, better known or extensively studied pharmaceutical or other product candidates. In addition, adverse developments in clinical trials of cell therapy products conducted by others may cause the FDA or other regulatory bodies to change the requirements for approval of any of our product candidates.

We may fail to demonstrate safety and efficacy to the satisfaction of applicable regulatory agencies.

We must conduct extensive testing of our product candidates to demonstrate their safety and efficacy, including both preclinical animal testing and evaluation in human clinical trials, before we can obtain regulatory approval to market and sell them. Conducting such testing is a lengthy, time-consuming, and expensive process and there is a high rate of failure.

Our current and completed preclinical and clinical results for our product candidates are not necessarily predictive of the results of our ongoing or future clinical trials. Promising results in preclinical studies of a product candidate may not be predictive of similar results in humans during clinical trials, and successful results from early human clinical trials of a product candidate may not be replicated in later and larger human clinical trials or in clinical trials for different indications. If the results of our or our collaborators’ ongoing or future clinical trials are negative or inconclusive with respect to the efficacy of our product candidates, or if these trials do not meet the clinical endpoints with statistical significance, or if there are safety concerns or adverse events associated with our product candidates, we or our collaborators may be prevented or delayed in obtaining marketing approval for our product candidates.

Even if ongoing or future clinical studies meet the clinical endpoints with statistical significance, the FDA or other regulatory agencies may still find the data insufficient to support marketing approval based on other factors.

We may encounter substantial delays in our clinical studies, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We cannot guarantee that any preclinical testing or clinical trials will be conducted as planned or completed on schedule, if at all. As a result, we may not achieve our expected clinical milestones. A failure can occur at any stage of testing. Events that may prevent successful or timely commencement, enrollment or completion of clinical development include:

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problems which may arise as a result of our transition of research and development programs from licensors or previous sponsors;

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delays in raising, or inability to raise, sufficient capital to fund the planned trials;

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delays by us or our collaborators in reaching a consensus with regulatory agencies on trial design;

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changes in trial design;

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inability to identify, recruit and train suitable clinical investigators;

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inability to add new clinical trial sites;

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delays in reaching agreement on acceptable terms for the performance of the trials with contract research organizations (“CROs”), and clinical trial sites;

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delays in obtaining required Institutional Review Board (“IRB”), approval at each clinical trial site;

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delays in recruiting suitable clinical sites and patients (i.e., subjects) to participate in clinical trials and delays in accruing medical events necessary to complete any events-driven trial;

•

imposition of a clinical hold by regulatory agencies for any reason, including negative clinical results, safety concerns or as a result of an inspection of manufacturing or clinical operations or trial sites;

•

failure by CROs, other third parties or us or our collaborators to adhere to clinical trial requirements;

•

failure to perform in accordance with the FDA’s current Good Clinical Practices (“cGCP”), or applicable regulatory guidelines in other countries;

•

delays in testing, validation, manufacturing and delivery of a product candidate to clinical trial sites;

MESOBLAST LTD [MESO] Filings
MESOBLAST LTD [MEOBF] Filings
20-F	[2021-08-31]
20-F	[2020-09-03]
20-F	[2019-09-09]
20-F	[2018-08-31]
20-F	[2017-08-30]
20-F	[2016-08-25]
F-1	[2015-11-02]

MESOBLAST LTD [MESO] Filings

MESOBLAST LTD [MEOBF] Filings