Press Release - March 31, 2022
Affimed Reports 2021 Financial Results and Highlights Recent Operational Progress
Heidelberg, Germany, March 31, 2022 – Affimed N.V. (Nasdaq: AFMD) (“Affimed”, or the “Company”), a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company committed to giving patients back their innate ability to fight cancer, today reported financial results for the year ended December 31, 2021, and provided an update on clinical and corporate progress.
“Over the course of 2021 we continued to make strong progress with each of our ICE® candidates by executing on our clinical development objectives,” said Dr. Adi Hoess, CEO of Affimed. “In particular, the clinical data from AFM13 pre-complexed with cord blood-derived natural killer (NK) cells in relapsed/refractory CD30+ lymphomas demonstrated the broad potential of our ICE® platform. We are very encouraged by this data as this could significantly broaden the AFM13 market opportunity targeting CD30-positive Hodgkin, T cell, and potentially B cell lymphoma. Furthermore, we believe these results validate that our ICE® candidates can meaningfully enhance NK cell-driven efficacy in underserved cancer patients, and we look forward to the presentation of further data at AACR.
“With the establishment of the recommended phase 2 dose for AFM24, we have embarked on a broad development strategy investigating AFM24 as monotherapy and in two combination studies – one with atezolizumab and the second with SNK01 NK cells,“ Dr. Hoess continued.
“We spent a good portion of 2021 transforming our organization by growing our team of dedicated scientists and industry experts. This investment in acquiring the right resources and talent, as well as our strong cash position, will ensure that we continue to deliver and advance our programs in 2022 and beyond.”
AFM13 (CD30/CD16A)
Affimed completed enrollment of its REDIRECT study (AFM13-202). The Company expects to report top-line data in the second half of 2022.
REDIRECT is a phase 2, registration-directed study of AFM13 monotherapy in patients with relapsed or refractory CD30-positive peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL).
AFM24 (EGFR/CD16A)
AFM28 (CD123/CD16A)
Pre-clinical pipeline
Affimed’s consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with IFRS as issued by the International Accounting Standard Board (IASB). The consolidated financial statements are presented in euros, which is the Company’s functional and presentation currency.
As of December 31, 2021, cash and cash equivalents totaled €197.6 million compared to €146.9 million as of December 31, 2020. Based on its current operating plan and assumptions, Affimed anticipates that its cash and cash equivalents will support operations into the second half of 2023.
Net cash used in operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2021, was €86.6 million compared to €19.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase is due to higher cash expenditure for research and development as well as general and administrative activities. In addition, net cash used in operating activities in 2020 included cash received from an initial upfront payment and committed funding of €33.3 million (USD 40 million) from the Roivant collaboration, as well as a milestone payment received pursuant to the Genentech collaboration.
Total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021, was €40.4 million compared with €28.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2020.
Revenue for the years ended December 31, 2021, and December 31, 2020, predominantly relate to the Genentech and Roivant collaboration. Collaboration revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021, was €39.3 million, with €21.6 million coming from the Genentech collaboration and €17.7 million from the Roivant collaboration. Collaboration revenue for year ended December 31, 2020, was €27.8 million, with €26.2 million from the Genentech collaboration and €1.4 million from the Roivant collaboration.
Research and development expenses for the year ended December 31, 2021, increased 63 percent from €50.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, to €81.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase was primarily due to increased expenses for AFM24 and AFM28 including costs to produce clinical trial material, an increase in costs associated with other early-stage programs and infrastructure, and an increase in share-based payment expenses.
General and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2021, increased 77 percent, from €13.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, to €24.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase predominately relates to higher share-based payment expenses in 2021, higher premiums for D&O liability insurance, and higher consulting expenses.
Net finance income for the year ended December 31, 2021, was €6.5 million compared to net finance costs of €6.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. Net finance income/costs is largely due to foreign exchange gains/losses related to assets denominated in U.S. dollars as a result of currency fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and Euro during the year.
Net loss for the year ended December 31, 2021, was €57.5 million, or €0.48 per common share compared with a net loss of €41.4 million, or €0.50 per common share, for the year ended December 31, 2020.
The weighted number of common shares outstanding for the year ended December 31, 2021, was 119.5 million. Additional information regarding these results will be included in the notes to the consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2021, included in Affimed’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Affimed prepares and reports consolidated financial statements and financial information in accordance with IFRS as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. None of the financial statements were prepared in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States. Affimed maintains its books and records in Euro.
Affimed will host a conference call and webcast March 31, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. EDT to discuss full year 2021 financial results and recent corporate developments. The conference call will be available via phone and webcast.
To access the call, please dial +1 (409) 220-9054 for U.S. callers, or +44 (0) 8000 323836 for international callers, and reference passcode 6590614 approximately 15 minutes prior to the call.
A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available in the “Webcasts” section on the “Investors” page of the Affimed website at https://www.affimed.com/investors/.
A replay of the webcast will be accessible at the same link for 30 days following the call.
Affimed (Nasdaq: AFMD) is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company committed to giving patients back their innate ability to fight cancer by actualizing the untapped potential of the innate immune system. The Company’s proprietary ROCK® platform enables a tumor-targeted approach to recognize and kill a range of hematologic and solid tumors, enabling a broad pipeline of wholly-owned and partnered single agent and combination therapy programs. The ROCK® platform predictably generates customized innate cell engager (ICE®) molecules, which use patients’ immune cells to destroy tumor cells. This innovative approach enabled Affimed to become the first company with a clinical-stage ICE®. Headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, with offices in New York, NY, Affimed is led by an experienced team of biotechnology and pharmaceutical leaders united by a bold vision to stop cancer from ever derailing patients’ lives. For more about the Company’s people, pipeline and partners, please visit: www.affimed.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which are often indicated by terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “goal,” “intend,” “look forward to,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places throughout this release and include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs, projections, outlook, analyses and current expectations concerning, among other things, the potential of AFM13, AFM24, AFM28 and our other product candidates, the value of our ROCK® platform, our ongoing and planned preclinical development and clinical trials, our collaborations and development of our products in combination with other therapies, the timing of and our ability to make regulatory filings and obtain and maintain regulatory approvals for our product candidates, our intellectual property position, our collaboration activities, our ability to develop commercial functions, clinical trial data, our results of operations, cash needs, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, future transactions, growth and strategies, the industry in which we operate, the trends that may affect the industry or us, impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the benefits to Affimed of orphan drug designation, the impact on our business by political events, war, terrorism, business interruptions and other geopolitical events and uncertainties, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the risks, uncertainties and other factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” in Affimed’s filings with the SEC. Given these risks, uncertainties, and other factors, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.
Director, Head of Investor Relations
E-Mail: a.fudukidis@affimed.com
Tel.: +1 (917) 436-8102