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): June 12, 2024

 

BARINTHUS BIOTHERAPEUTICS PLC

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

England and Wales	001-40367	Not Applicable
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

 

Barinthus Biotherapeutics plc

Unit 6-10, Zeus Building Rutherford Avenue,

Harwell, Didcot, OX11 0DF

United Kingdom

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

 

+44 (0) 1865 818 808

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 

Not Applicable

(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:

 

Title of each class	Trade Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
American Depositary Shares	BRNS	The Nasdaq Global Market
Ordinary shares, nominal value £0.000025 per share*

 

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.  ¨

 

*American Depositary Shares may be evidenced by American Depositary Receipts. Each American Depositary Share represents one (1) ordinary share. Not for trading, but only in connection with the listing of the American Depositary Shares on The Nasdaq Global Market. The American Depositary Shares represent the right to receive ordinary shares and are being registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to a separate Registration Statement on Form F-6. Accordingly, the American Depositary Shares are exempt from the operation of Section 12(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, pursuant to Rule 12a-8.

 

00-0000000

 

Item 8.01. Other Events.

 

On June 12, 2024, Barinthus Biotherapeutics plc, or the Company, announced plans to prioritize its pipeline to focus on the development of VTP-300 in chronic Hepatitis B virus infection, or CHB, and VTP-1000 in celiac disease.

 

The development of VTP-300 in CHB and VTP-1000 in celiac disease will be prioritized and the ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial of VTP-850 in prostate cancer will be completed. The Company expects to undergo a restructuring to align resources with the streamlined pipeline, which will include a workforce reduction of approximately 25% and an estimated extension of the cash runway into the second quarter of 2026.

 

Forward Looking Statements

 

This Current Report on Form 8-K contains forward-looking statements regarding the Company within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, which can generally be identified as such by use of the words “may,” “will,” “plan,” “forward,” “encouraging,” “believe,” “potential,” and similar expressions, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, express or implied statements regarding our product development activities and clinical trials, our cash runway, our pipeline prioritization, including the corporate restructuring and planned reduction in headcount, and our ability to develop and advance our current and future product candidates and programs. Any forward-looking statements in this Current Report on Form 8-K are based on our management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and important factors that may cause actual events or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties related to the success, cost and timing of our pipeline development activities and planned and ongoing clinical trials, our ability to execute on our corporate restructuring, the risk that we may not achieve the anticipated benefits of our pipeline prioritization, including the risk that our estimates of our cash runway are incorrect, regulatory developments, our ability to fund our operations and access capital, the risk that interim or topline data may not reflect final data or results, global economic uncertainty, including disruptions in the banking industry, the conflict in Ukraine, the conflict in Israel and Gaza, and other risks identified in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. We expressly disclaim any obligation to publicly update or revise any such statements to reflect any change in expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

 

 

SIGNATURE

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

	Barinthus Biotherapeutics plc
Date: June 12, 2024	By:	/s/ William Enright
		William Enright
		Chief Executive Officer