UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549


FORM 10-K/A
(Amendment No. 1)


FOR ANNUAL AND TRANSITION REPORTS PURSUANT TO SECTIONS 13 OR 15(d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

(Mark One)

 

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

 

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015

 

OR

 

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

 

For the transition period from                          to                         

 

001-33357

(Commission file number)


PROTALIX BIOTHERAPEUTICS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


   
Delaware   65-0643773

State or other jurisdiction

of incorporation or organization

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

 

   

2 Snunit Street

Science Park

POB 455

Carmiel, Israel

 

 

 

20100

 

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

 

972-4-988-9488

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

   
Title of each class Name of each exchange on which registered
Common stock, par value $0.001 per share NYSE MKT

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

 

None


 

 

 

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.  Yes   ¨   No   x

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.  Yes   ¨   No   x

 

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   x   No   ¨

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).   Yes   x   No   ¨

 

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.   ¨

 

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

 

Large accelerated filer ¨     Accelerated filer x  
Non-accelerated filer ¨   (Do not check if a smaller reporting company) Smaller reporting company ¨  

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).  Yes   ¨    No   x

 

The aggregate market value of the voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the Registrant, as of June 30, 2015 was approximately $115 million (based upon a per share price equal to $1.95, the closing price for shares of the Registrant’s common stock reported by the NYSE MKT for such date). Shares of common stock held by each officer, director and holder of 5% or more of the outstanding common stock have been excluded in that such persons may be deemed to be affiliates. This determination of affiliate status is not necessarily a conclusive determination for other purposes.

 

On March 1, 2016, approximately 99,808,238 shares of the Registrant’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share, were outstanding.

 

 

 

  

EXPLANATORY NOTE

 

Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. is filing this Amendment No. 1 to its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, as originally filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 8, 2016 (the “Original Form 10-K”), to add information required in Part III of its Annual Report on Form 10-K because a definitive proxy statement containing such information will not be filed within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year covered by the Form 10-K. In addition, we have update the exhibit index. This amendment is not intended to update any other information presented in the Original Form 10-K. The Original Form 10-K continues to speak as of the dates described therein, and we have not updated the disclosures contained therein to reflect any events that occurred subsequent to such dates. Accordingly, this amendment should be read in conjunction with our filings made with the SEC subsequent to the Original Form 10-K, as information in such filings may update or supersede certain information contained in the Original Form 10-K and in this amendment.

 

FORM 10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

  Page 

  

PART III
     
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 1
Item 11. Executive Compensation 4
Item 12.

Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters 

12
   
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence 14
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services 16
PART IV

  

Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules 17
Signatures   19

 

 

 

   

PART III

 

Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance

 

Our directors and executive officers, their ages and positions as of April 15, 2016 are as follows:

 

Name Age Position
     
Directors    
Shlomo Yanai 63 Chairman of the Board
Moshe Manor 59 Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
Amos Bar Shalev (1)(2)(3) 63 Director
Zeev Bronfeld (1)(2)(3) 64 Director
Yodfat Harel Buchris (1)(2)(3) 43 Director
Roger D. Kornberg, Ph.D. 68 Director
Aharon Schwartz, Ph.D. 73 Director
Executive Officers    
Einat Brill Almon, Ph.D. 57 Senior Vice President, Product Development
Yossi Maimon, CPA 45 Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and Secretary
Tzvi Palash 59 Chief Operating Officer
Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D. 63 Executive VP, Research and Development

________________________________

(1) Member of Nominating Committee

(2) Member of Audit Committee

(3) Member of Compensation Committee

 

Shlomo Yanai. Shlomo Yanai has served as the Chairman of our Board of Directors since July 2014. Mr. Yanai is currently the Chairman of the Board of Cambrex Corporation (NYSE:CBM) and a director of Quinpario Acquisition Corp. 2 (NASDAQ:QPACU), Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGNT) and Perrigo Co. plc (NASDAQ:PRGO). From 2012 through 2015, Mr. Yanai served as a director of Lumenis Ltd. Mr. Yanai served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Teva (NASDAQ:TEVA, TASE:TEVA) from March 2007 until May 2012 and, prior to joining Teva, Mr. Yanai was President and Chief Executive Officer of Makhteshim-Agan Industries Ltd. from 2003 until 2006. Before that, he was a Major General in the Israel Defense Forces, where he served for 32 years, in various positions, the last two positions being Commanding Officer of the Southern Command and Head of the Division of Strategic Planning. Mr. Yanai was the head of the Israeli security delegation to the peace talks at Camp David, Shepherdstown and Wye River. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Governors of the Technion — Israel Institute of Technology of Haifa, Israel, and of the International Advisory Board, MBA Program of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel, as well as an honorary member of the Board of the Institute for Policy and Strategy of the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC), Herzliya, Israel. Mr. Yanai holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from Tel Aviv University, a master’s degree in national resources management from George Washington University, and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program of Harvard Business School and U.S. National War College (NDU). Mr. Yanai was the recipient of the Max Perlman Award for Excellence in Global Business Management from Tel Aviv University, Israel in 2005 and was awarded an honorary doctorate by Bar-Ilan University, Israel in 2012. We believe Mr. Yanai’s qualifications to serve as Chairman of our Board of Directors include his vast global operating experience in the life-science and pharmaceutical and agro-chemicals industry. He also brings a global perspective to the Board, incorporating his industry and Board leadership experience and his distinguished military service.

 

Moshe Manor. Mr. Manor has served as our President and Chief Executive Officer and as a director of our company since November 2014. Mr. Manor served in a number of senior executive positions at Teva (NASDAQ:TEVA, TASE:TEVA) from 1984 through 2012. Most recently, he served as President, Teva Asia & Pacific where he led the strategy and development of a high growth region for Teva. Prior to that, he was Group Vice President, Global Branded Products, leading the Innovative Commercial and Research & Development franchises. From 2006 through 2008, Mr. Manor was Senior Vice President, Global Innovative Resources, and was responsible for generating over $3 billion in sales with Copaxone® and Azilect®. Previously, he served as director of Teva Israel. Most recently, Mr. Manor serves on the Board of Directors of Kamedis Ltd. and Coronis Partners, and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of a startup company, MEway Pharma. He holds a BA in Economics from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and an MBA from the Tel-Aviv University. We believe Mr. Manor’s qualifications to serve on our Board of Directors include his extensive experience in the life-science and pharmaceutical industry on a global scale.

 

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Amos Bar Shalev. Mr. Bar Shalev has served as our director since July 2008. Previously, Mr. Bar Shalev served as a director of Protalix Ltd. from 2005 through January 31, 2008, and as our director from December 31, 2006 through January 31, 2008. Mr. Bar Shalev brings to us extensive experience in managing technology companies. Currently, Mr. Bar Shalev serves on the boards of directors of Aposense Ltd. (TASE: APOS), an Israeli publicly-traded company listed on the TASE, since 2011, and of Ocure Ltd. (since 2012) and Velox Ltd. (since 2013), privately-held Israeli companies. From 2004 through 2012, Mr. Bar Shalev served as a director of Technorov Holdings (1993) Ltd. and managed its portfolio. In addition, he served on the board of directors of Highcon Systems Ltd., a privately-held Israeli company, from 2010 through 2012. From 1997 through 2004, he was a Managing Director of TDA Capital Partners, a management company of the TGF (Templeton Tadiran) Fund. From 2004 through 2007, he was the President of Win Buyer Ltd. He has served on the board of directors of many other companies, including, among others, NESS Ltd. (acquired by BioNess Inc.), Idanit (acquired by Scitex Corporation Ltd.), Objet Geometrix (merged with Stratasys, Inc. (NASDAQ:SSYS)), Verisity, Scitex Vision (acquired by Hewlett Packard), Golden Wings Investment Company Ltd., the venture capital fund of the Israeli Air Force Veterans Business Club, Win Buyer Ltd. and Sun Light Ltd. He received his B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the Technion, Israel in 1978 and M.B.A. from the Tel Aviv University in 1981. He holds the highest award from the Israeli Air Force for technological achievements. We believe Mr. Bar Shalev’s qualifications to serve on our Board of Directors include his years of experience in the management of Israeli businesses.

 

Zeev Bronfeld.   Mr. Bronfeld has served as a director of Protalix Ltd. since 1996 and as our director since December 31, 2006. Mr. Bronfeld brings to us vast experience in management and value building of biotechnology companies. He is an experienced businessman who is involved in a number of biotechnology companies. He was a co-founder of Biocell Ltd., a former Israeli publicly traded holding company that specialized in biotechnology companies and served as its Chief Executive Officer from 1986 through 2015. Mr. Bronfeld currently serves as a director of The Trendlines Group (42T.SI), D.N.A. Biomedical Solutions Ltd. (TASE:DNA), and Macrocure Ltd. (NASDAQ:MCUR), all of which are public companies. Mr. Bronfeld is also a director of a number of privately-held companies, most of which are involved in the life sciences, such as Entera Bio Ltd., Contipi Medical Ltd. and TransBiodiesel Ltd. From 2004 through 2012, Mr. Bronfeld served as a director of D. Medical Industries Ltd., a company that was dually-listed on the Nasdaq and the TASE. Mr. Bronfeld received a B.A. in Economics from the Hebrew University in 1975. We believe Mr. Bronfeld’s qualifications to serve on our Board of Directors include his years of experience in the management of private and public Israeli companies, including life science companies.

 

Yodfat Harel Buchris.   Mrs. Harel Buchris has served as our director since June 2007. Since February 2014, Mrs. Harel Buchris has served as the employer representative in Israel’s National Labor Court. She is also a Partner and a member of the board of directors of YP and 6 Partners Ltd., a business consulting and investment company. Since February 2016 she has served on the board of directors of Israel Discount Bank Limited (DSCT:TA) and, since January 2016, on the board of directors of Eltek Ltd. (ELTK:NASDAQ). From 2006 to 2013, Mrs. Harel Buchris served as a Managing Director of Tamares Capital Ltd., a private investment group with interests in real estate, technology, manufacturing, leisure and media. At Tamares Capital, Mrs. Harel Buchris served as the Business Development Director and the head of the Israel office. Prior to joining Tamares Capital, from 2004 to 2006, she was the Head of the Medical Desk of Orbotech, Ltd. (NASDAQ:ORBK), a company providing high-tech inspection and imaging solutions for bare printed circuit board (PCB), flat panel display (FPD) and PCB assembly manufacturing worldwide. Prior to that, from 1994 to 2003, she was a Managing Director of Harel-Hertz Investment House Ltd., a business investment company with offices in Tel Aviv, Israel and Tokyo, Japan. In 2002, Harel-Hertz Investment House became the Israeli representative office for ITX Corporation, a publicly-traded company in Japan. Mrs. Harel Buchris has served on the board of directors of Tamares Capital, Tamares Hotels, El Al, British Israel, Storewiz, N-trig, Secure Pharma, Siklu and Tamares Telecom. Mrs. Harel Buchris holds a B.A. in Communications and Political Science from Bar Ilan University and an executive M.B.A. from Bradford University, Great Britain. She has also completed programs in Mediation at Gome, Israel Mediation Center, Directors’ Studies and Advanced Advertising and Marketing at the Israel Management Center. We believe Mrs. Harel Buchris’ qualifications to serve on our Board of Directors include her experience in the management of Israeli and other businesses.

 

Roger D. Kornberg, Ph.D.   Professor Kornberg has served as our director since February 2008. He has served as a director of OphthaliX Inc. (OTCBB:OPLI) since 2012, and as the chairman of the board of directors of two related start-up companies. He also serves as the Chief Scientist of Cocrystal Pharma, Inc. (OTCQB: COCP) (f/k/a Biozone Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) and in 2014 served on their Board of Directors. He served as a director of Teva (NASDAQ:TEVA, TASE:TEVA) from 2007 through 2013. Professor Kornberg is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the Winzer Professor of Medicine in the Department of Structural Biology at Stanford University, Stanford, California. He has been a member of the faculty of Stanford University since 1972. Prior to that, he was a professor at Harvard Medical School. Professor Kornberg is a renowned biochemist and in 2006 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in recognition for his studies of the molecular basis of eukaryotic transcription, the process by which DNA is copied to RNA. Professor Kornberg is also the recipient of several awards, including the 2001 Welch Prize, the highest award granted in the field of chemistry in the United States, and the 2002 Leopold Mayer Prize, the highest award granted in the field of biomedical sciences from the French Academy of Sciences. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from Harvard University in 1967 and his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Stanford University in 1972. He holds honorary degrees from universities in Europe and Israel, including the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, where he currently is a visiting professor. We believe Professor Kornberg’s qualifications to serve on our Board of Directors include his expertise in chemistry and medicine and his experience in the academic arena.

 

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Aharon Schwartz, Ph.D. Dr. Schwartz retired from Teva in 2011 where he served in a number of positions from 1975 through 2011, the most recent being Vice President, Head of Teva Innovative Ventures from 2008. Dr. Schwartz is currently chairman of the board of directors of a number of life science companies, including BiolineRx Ltd. (NASDAQ:BLRX, TASE:BLRX), DPharm Ltd. (TASE:DPRM), BioCancell Ltd. (TASE:BICL) and CureTech Ltd., and a member of the board of directors of Alcobra Ltd. (NASDAQ:ADHD) and Foamix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (NASDAQ:FOMX). Dr. Schwartz received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1978 from the Weizmann Institute, his M.Sc. in organic chemistry from the Technion and a B.Sc. in chemistry and physics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Dr. Schwartz received a second Ph.D. in 2014 from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the history and philosophy of science.

 

Einat Brill Almon, Ph.D. Dr. Almon joined Protalix Ltd. in December 2004, originally as a Senior Director and later as a Vice President and then Senior Vice President, Product Development, and became our Senior Vice President, Product Development on December 31, 2006. Dr. Almon has many years of experience in the management of life science projects and companies, including biotechnology and agrobiotech, with direct experience in clinical, device and scientific software development, as well as a strong background and work experience in Intellectual Property. Prior to joining Protalix Ltd., from 2001 to 2004, she served as Director of R&D and IP of Biogenics Ltd., a company that developed an autologous platform for tissue-based protein drug delivery. Biogenics, based in Israel, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Medgenics Inc. Dr. Almon has trained as a biotechnology patent agent at leading IP firms in Israel. Dr. Almon holds a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. in molecular biology of cancer research from the Weizmann Institute of Science, a B.Sc. from the Hebrew University and has carried out Post-Doctoral research at the Hebrew University in the area of plant molecular biology.

 

Yossi Maimon, CPA.   Mr. Maimon joined Protalix Ltd. on October 15, 2006 as its Chief Financial Officer and became our Vice President and Chief Financial Officer on December 31, 2006. Prior to joining Protalix, from 2002 to 2006, he served as the Chief Financial Officer of Colbar LifeScience Ltd., or Colbar, a biomaterial company focusing on aesthetics, where he led all of the corporate finance activities, fund raisings and legal aspects of Colbar including the sale of Colbar to Johnson and Johnson. Mr. Maimon has a B.A. in accounting from the City University of New York and an MBA from Tel Aviv University, and he is a Certified Public Accountant in the United States (New York State) and Israel.

 

Tzvi Palash. Mr. Palash has served as Protalix Ltd.’s Chief Operating Officer since September 6, 2010. Prior to joining Protalix Ltd., from 2006 through 2010, Mr. Palash served as a General Manager of ColBar. In that position, Mr. Palash served as a member of the Global Aesthetic Management Team at the Consumer Group of Johnson & Johnson. Prior to that, from 2001 through 2006, Mr. Palash served as the Vice President, Operations of ColBar, and he has served in different positions at Teva. Mr. Palash has an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from the Hebrew University and a B.Sc. in Biology from the Tel Aviv University.

 

Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D.   Dr. Shaaltiel founded Protalix Ltd. in 1993 and has served as a member of our Board of Directors and as our Vice President, Research and Development since December 31, 2006. Prior to establishing Protalix Ltd., from 1988 to 1993, Dr. Shaaltiel was a Research Associate at the MIGAL Technological Center. He also served as Deputy Head of the Biology Department of the Biological and Chemical Center of the Israeli Defense Forces and as a Biochemist at Makor Chemicals Ltd. Dr. Shaaltiel was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California at Berkeley and at Rutgers University in New Jersey. He has co-authored over 40 articles and abstracts on plant biochemistry and holds seven patents. Dr. Shaaltiel received his Ph.D. in Plant Biochemistry from the Weizmann Institute of Science, an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from the Hebrew University and a B.Sc. in Biology from the Ben Gurion University.

 

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

 

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our directors, executive officers and holders of more than 10% of our common stock to file with the SEC reports regarding their ownership and changes in ownership of our equity securities. We believe that all Section 16 filings requirements were met by our officers and directors during 2015, except that each of Dr. Shaaltiel, Dr. Brill Almon, Mr. Maimon and Mr. Palash made one late Form 4 filing during 2015. In making this statement, we have relied solely upon examination of the copies of Forms 3, 4 and 5, Schedule 13s and written representations of our former and current directors, officers and 10% shareholders.

 

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Audit Committee

 

We require that all Audit Committee members possess the required level of financial literacy and at least one member of the Audit Committee meet the current standard of requisite financial management expertise as required by the NYSE MKT and applicable rules and regulations of the SEC. Messrs. Bar Shalev and Bronfeld, and Mrs. Harel Buchris have been appointed by the Board of Directors to serve on the Audit Committee until their respective successors have been duly elected.

 

Our Audit Committee operates under a formal charter that governs its duties and conduct. A current copy of the Audit Committee Charter is available on our website at http://www.protalix.com .

 

All members of the Audit Committee are independent from our executive officers and management.

 

Our independent registered public accounting firm reports directly to the Audit Committee.

 

Our Audit Committee meets with management and representatives of our registered public accounting firm prior to the filing of officers’ certifications with the SEC to receive information concerning, among other things, effectiveness of the design or operation of our internal controls over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

 

Our Audit Committee has adopted a Policy for Reporting Questionable Accounting and Auditing Practices and Policy Prohibiting Retaliation against Reporting employees to enable confidential and anonymous reporting of improper activities to the Audit Committee.

 

Messrs. Bar Shalev and Bronfeld and Mrs. Harel Buchris qualify as “audit committee financial experts” under the applicable rules of the SEC. In making the determination as to these individuals’ status as audit committee financial experts, our Board of Directors determined they have accounting and related financial management expertise within the meaning of the aforementioned rules, as well as the listing standards of the NYSE MKT.

 

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

 

We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that includes provisions ranging from restrictions on gifts to conflicts of interest. All of our employees and directors are bound by this Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. Violations of our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics may be reported to the Audit Committee.

 

The Code of Business Conduct and Ethics includes provisions applicable to all of our employees, including senior financial officers and members of our Board of Directors and is posted on our website (www.protalix.com). We intend to post amendments to or waivers from any such Code of Business Conduct and Ethics.

 

Item 11. Executive Compensation

 

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

 

The primary goals of the Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors with respect to executive compensation are to attract and retain the most talented and dedicated executives possible, to tie annual and long-term cash and stock incentives to achievement of specified performance objectives, and to align executives’ incentives with shareholder value creation. To achieve these goals, the Compensation Committee implements and maintains compensation plans that tie a portion of executives’ overall compensation to key strategic goals such as developments in our clinical path, the establishment of key strategic collaborations, the build-up of our pipeline and the strengthening of our financial position. The Compensation Committee evaluates individual executive performance with a goal of setting compensation at levels the committee believes are comparable with executives in other companies of similar size and stage of development operating in the biotechnology industry while taking into account our relative performance and our own strategic goals.

 

Elements of Compensation

 

Executive compensation consists of following elements:

 

Base Salary. Base salaries for our executives are established based on the scope of their responsibilities taking into account competitive market compensation paid by other companies for similar positions. Generally, we believe that executive base salaries should be targeted near the median of the range of salaries for executives in similar positions with similar responsibilities at comparable companies. The Compensation Committee convenes, from time to time to evaluate present and future executive compensation, which evaluation generally includes an evaluation of the peer group considered in analyzing executive compensation. The Compensation Committee intends to continue reviewing and revising the peer group periodically to ensure that it continues to reflect companies similar to our company in size and development stage. The Compensation Committee also reviews executive compensation reports and an analysis of publicly-traded biotechnology companies prepared by third party experts from a well-known consulting firm for additional data and other information regarding executive compensation for comparative purposes.

 

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Base salaries are usually reviewed annually, and adjusted from time to time to realign salaries with market levels after taking into account individual responsibilities, performance and experience. The base salaries of each of our President and Chief Executive Officer, our Executive Vice President, Research and Development, our Senior Vice President, Product Development, our Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Operating Officer, who we refer to collectively as the “Named Executive Officers,” are discussed herein. In March 2016, our Board of Directors adopted certain recommendations of the Compensation Committee regarding the compensation of our Named Executive Officers with no change in the base salary component, as discussed below.

 

Annual Bonus . The Compensation Committee has the authority to award discretionary annual bonuses to our executive officers. The discretionary annual bonus awards were intended to compensate officers for achieving financial, clinical, regulatory and operational goals and for achieving individual annual performance objectives. For any given year, the compensation objectives vary, but relate generally to strategic factors such as developments in our clinical path, the execution of a license agreement for the commercialization of product candidates, the establishment of key strategic collaborations, the build-up of our pipeline and financial factors such as capital raising. Bonuses are awarded generally based on corporate performance, with adjustments made within a range for individual performance, at the discretion of the Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee determines, on a discretionary basis, the size of the entire bonus pool and the amount of the actual award to each Named Executive Officer.

 

The Compensation Committee selects, in its discretion, the executive officers of our company or our subsidiary who are eligible to receive bonuses for any given year. Any bonus granted by the Compensation Committee will generally be paid upon the achievement of a specific milestone, subject to certain terms and conditions. The Compensation Committee has not fixed a minimum or maximum award for any executive officer’s annual discretionary bonus. Each of our executive officers is eligible for a discretionary annual bonus under his or her employment agreement.

 

Performance Bonus . In March 2016, the Compensation Committee adopted a new performance-based bonus plan for the Named Executive Officers and other members of our management. The new bonus plan is designed to provide cash bonuses over a three-year period based on our company’s achievement of what we consider to be major milestones. The amounts payable to each person for each milestone were determined after consideration of both personal and company objectives and are based on a multiple of the person’s monthly salary. Such multiples range from a maximum of 12 months to a minimum of one-half a month. Each bonus is payable upon the achievement of the applicable milestone, subject to certain terms and conditions. The bonus plan is summarized as follows:

 

Milestone   Moshe
Manor
  Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D.   Einat Brill
Almon, Ph.D.
  Yossi
Maimon
  Tzvi
Palash
Clinical Development Milestone for Certain Product Candidate   $108,000   $42,000   $72,000
to $108,000
  $36,000   $34,000
Regulatory Development Milestone for Same Product Candidate   $108,000
to $216,000
  $84,000
to $168,000
  $108,000
to $216,000
  $36,000
to $54,000
  $34,000
to $68,000
Clinical Development Milestone for Certain Product Candidate   $54,000   $10,500   $27,000
to $54,000
  $9,000   $8,500
Clinical Development Milestone for Certain other Product Candidate   $54,000   $10,500   $27,000
to $54,000
  $9,000   $8,500
General Regulatory Milestone   $102,000   $42,000   $36,000   $18,000   $102,000
Substantial Transaction involving a Certain Product Candidate   $128,000   $21,000   $18,000   $115,000
to $141,000
  $17,000
Substantial Transaction involving other Product Candidate   $112,000   $10,500   $9,000   $49,000
to  $60,000
  $8,500
Corporate Finance Milestones   $216,000           $197,000
to $242,000
   
Early-Stage Clinical Milestones   $72,000   $252,000   $72,000   $36,000   $68,000

 

Options and Share-Based Compensation. Our amended 2006 stock incentive plan authorizes us to grant options to purchase shares of common stock, restricted stock and other securities to our employees, directors and consultants. Our Compensation Committee is the administrator of the stock incentive plan. Stock option or other grants are generally made at the commencement of employment and following a significant change in job responsibilities or to meet other special retention or performance objectives. The Compensation Committee reviews and approves stock option and other awards to executive officers based upon a review of competitive compensation data, its assessment of individual performance, a review of each executive’s existing long-term incentives, and retention considerations. The exercise price of stock options granted under our amended 2006 stock incentive plan must be equal to at least 100% of the fair market value of our common stock on the date of grant; however, in certain circumstances, grants may be made at a lower price to Israeli grantees who are residents of the State of Israel. See “Summary Compensation Table – Grants of Plan-Based Awards” below for grants of options to our Named Executives Officers during fiscal year 2015.

 

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Severance and Change in Control Benefits. Pursuant to the employment agreements entered into with each of our executive officers, the executive officer is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance. The intention of such Manager’s Policies is to provide the Israel-based officers with severance protection of one month’s salary for each year of employment. In addition, the stock options and restricted stock granted to each of our Named Executive Officers provide that all of such instruments are subject to accelerated vesting immediately upon a change in control of our company. As part of the new bonus plan adopted in March 2016, it was agreed that the Board of Directors will grant certain cash bonuses to the Named Executive Officers and other of our employees in its sole discretion upon the occurrence of a change in control.

 

Other Compensation. Consistent with our compensation philosophy, we intend to continue to maintain our current benefits for our executive officers; however, the Compensation Committee in its discretion may revise, amend, or add to the officer’s executive benefits if it deems it advisable. As an additional benefit to all of our Israel-based Named Executive Officers and for most of our employees, we generally contribute to certain funds amounts equaling a total of approximately 15% of their gross salaries for certain pension and other savings plans for the benefit of the Named Executive Officers. In addition, in accordance with customary practice in Israel, our Israel-based executives’ agreements require us to contribute towards their vocational studies, and to provide annual recreational allowances, a company car and a company phone. We believe these benefits are currently equivalent with median competitive levels for comparable companies.

 

Executive Compensation. We refer to the “Summary Compensation Table” set forth below for information regarding the compensation earned during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015 by: our President and Chief Executive Officer, our Executive Vice President, Research and Development, our Senior Vice President, Product Development, our Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Operating Officer, who we refer to collectively as the “Named Executive Officers.”

 

Compensation Committee Report

 

The above report of the Compensation Committee does not constitute soliciting material and shall not be deemed filed or incorporated by reference into any other filing by us under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

 

The Compensation Committee has reviewed and discussed the Compensation Discussion and Analysis set forth below with our management. Based on this review and discussion, the Compensation Committee has recommended to our Board of Directors that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in our Annual Report on Form 10–K and our annual proxy statement on Schedule 14A.

 

Respectfully submitted on April 5, 2016, by the members of the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors .

 

Amos Bar Shalev

Zeev Bronfeld

Yodfat Harel Buchris

 

Summary Compensation Table

 

The following table sets forth a summary for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2015, 2014, and 2013, respectively, of the cash and non-cash compensation awarded, paid or accrued by us or Protalix Ltd. to our President and Chief Executive Officer, our Executive Vice President, Research and Development, our Senior Vice President, Product Development, our Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Operating Officer, who we refer to collectively as the “Named Executive Officers.” There were no restricted stock awards, long-term incentive plan payouts or other compensation paid during fiscal years 2015, 2014, and 2013 by us or Protalix Ltd. to the Named Executive Officers, except as set forth below. All of the Named Executive Officers are employees of our subsidiary, Protalix Ltd. All currency amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars.

 

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Name and Principal Position   Year     Salary($)     Bonus ($)     Stock
Award(s) ($)
    Option Award(s) ($)     All Other
Compensation ($)(1)
   

Total ($)

 
Moshe Manor (2)     2015       334,708                       427,864       95,823       858,395  
President and     2014       93,667               -       200,962       18,399       313,028  
Chief Executive Officer                                                        
Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D.     2015       271,730       85,000       110,244       112,497       74,058       653,529  
Executive Vice President,     2014       305,548       90,000       232,979       62,651       84,719       775,897  
Research and Development     2013       302,901       120,000       429,927       140,770       81,672       1,075,270  
Einat Brill Almon, Ph.D.     2015       234,899       117, 500       97,120       102,215       62,362       614,096  
Senior Vice President,     2014       263,917       85,000       205,244       56,170       68,489       678,820  
Product Development     2013       261,505       100,000       378,745       126,208       66,600       933,058  
Yossi Maimon, CPA     2015       266,776       246,009       97,120       102,215       68,398       780,518  
Vice President,     2014       299,090       225,000       205,244       56,170       74,493       859,997  
Chief Financial Officer     2013       292,096       110,000       378,745       126,208       67,739       974,788  
Tzvi Palash     2015       208,106       60,000       53,547       49,141       71,192       441,986  
Chief Operating Officer     2014       233,669       50,000       113,161       11,413       74,520       482,763  
      2013       231,668       20,000       208,822       72,055       72,105       604,650  

________________________________

(1) Includes employer contributions to pension and/or insurance plans and other miscellaneous payments.
(2) Mr. Manor commenced his tenure as our President and Chief Executive Officer as of November 1, 2014.

 

Grants of Plan-Based Awards

 

The following table summarizes the grant of awards made to the Named Executive Officers during 2015 as of December 31, 2015.

 

Name   Grant Date   All Other Stock Awards:
Number of Shares of Stock or Units (#)
  Grant Date Fair Value
of Stock and Option Awards ($)
(a)   (b)   (i)   (l)
Yoseph Shaaltiel   March 23, 2015   275,000   270,252
Einat Brill Almon   March 23, 2015   250,000   245,684
Yossi Maimon   March 23, 2015   250,000   245,684
Tzvi Palash   March 23, 2015   125,000   122,842

 

Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End

 

The following table sets forth information with respect to the Named Executive Officers concerning equity awards as of December 31, 2015.

 

    Option Awards     Stock Awards  

Name

 

Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised
Options
Exercisable (#)

   

Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised Options Unexercisable (#)

   

Option Exercise
Price ($)

   

Option Expiration Date

   

Number of Shares or Units of Stock That Have Not Vested (#)

   

Market Value of Shares or Units of Stock That Have Not Vested ($)

 
Moshe Manor     281,250       618,750       2.37       9/29/2024       --       --  
Yoseph Shaaltiel     122,162       -       0.001       6/30/2016                  
      263,728       -       5.00       2/7/2018                  
      50,000       -       2.65       2/25/2019                  
      145,000       -       6.90       2/25/2020                  
                                      39,375       40,163  
      -       275,000       1.72       3/23/2025                  
Einat Brill Almon     311,272       -       5.00       2/7/2018                  
      130,000       -       6.90       2/25/2020                  
              -                       34,688       35,382  
      -       250,000       1.72       3/23/2025                  
Yossi Maimon     175,000       -       5.00       2/7/2018                  
      130,000               6.90       2/25/2020                  
              -                       34,688       35,382  
      -       250,000       1.72       3/23/2025                  
Tzvi Palash     160,000               7.55       8/29/2020                  
                                      19,125       19,508  
      -       125,000       1.72       3/23/2025                  

 

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Option exercises during 2015 and vested stock awards for Named Executive Officers as of December 31, 2015 were as follows:

 

Option Exercises and Stock Vested
    Option Awards     Stock Awards  
Name   Number of Shares Acquired on Exercise (#)     Value Received on Exercise ($)     Number of Shares Acquired on Vesting (#)     Value Received on Vesting ($)  
(a)   (b)     (c)     (d)     (e)  
Moshe Manor     -       -       -       -  
Yoseph Shaaltiel     -       -       52,500          
Einat Brill Almon     -       -       46,250          
Yossi Maimon     -       -       46,250          
Tzvi Palash     -       -       25,500          

 

Potential Payments upon Termination or Change-in-Control/Corporate Transaction

 

Each of our Named Executive Officers (while they remain employed by our company) is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance upon termination. The intention of such Manager’s Policies is to provide our officers with severance protection of one month’s salary for each year of employment. We do not provide any change in control/corporate transaction benefits to our Named Executive Officers except for certain cash bonuses at the board’s sole discretion and the acceleration of the vesting periods for outstanding options and restricted stock. Had we experienced a change in control/corporate transaction on December 31, 2015, the value of the acceleration of the vesting period of Mr. Manor’s options would be zero; as of the same date all exercise prices of options held by each of our other Named Executive Officers were above the market value of our shares and, accordingly, the value of the acceleration of the stock options held by each of them as of such date would be zero. In addition, had we experienced a change in control/corporate transaction on December 31, 2015, the value of the acceleration of vesting of the restricted stock held by each of Dr. Shaaltiel, Dr. Brill Almon, Mr. Maimon and Mr. Palash would be $40,163, $35,382, $35,382, and $19,508, respectively.

 

Employment Arrangements

 

Moshe Manor. Mr. Manor joined Protalix Ltd. as its President and Chief Executive Officer pursuant to an employment agreement dated September 28, 2014. Pursuant to the employment agreement, his current monthly base salary is NIS 95,000 (approximately $25,200) and Mr. Manor is entitled to an annual discretionary bonus subject to the sole discretion of our Board of Directors. The Board of Directors shall determine the bonus on the basis of agreed-upon annual objectives which shall include both measurable and strategic parameters. The monthly salary is subject to cost of living adjustments from time to time as may be required by law. The Board of Directors also granted to Mr. Manor options to purchase 900,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price equal to $2.37 per share, the closing sales price of the common stock on the NYSE MKT for the last trading day immediately preceding the effective date of the grant. The options vest over four years on a quarterly basis in 16 equal increments, subject to certain conditions. Vesting of the options will be accelerated in full upon a Corporate Transaction or a Change in Control, as those terms are defined in the Company’s 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended. Mr. Manor’s employment agreement is terminable by our company on 90 days written notice for any reason during the first year of the agreement’s term and on 180 days written notice thereafter. Mr. Manor may terminate the agreement on 90 days written notice for any reason during its term. We may terminate the Agreement for cause without notice. Mr. Manor is entitled to be insured by the Company under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance, company contributions towards vocational studies, annual recreational allowances, a company car and a company phone. Mr. Manor is entitled to 24 working days of vacation.

 

Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D. Dr. Shaaltiel founded Protalix Ltd. in 1993 and currently serves as our Executive Vice President, Research and Development. Dr. Shaaltiel entered into an employment agreement with Protalix Ltd. on September 1, 2001. Pursuant to the employment agreement, his current monthly base salary is NIS 80,750 (approximately $21,400) per month. The employment agreement is terminable by Protalix Ltd. on 90 days’ written notice for any reason and we may terminate the agreement for cause without notice. In addition, vesting of all of Dr. Shaaltiel’s options and restricted shares will be accelerated in full upon a Corporate Transaction or a Change in Control, as those terms are defined in the Company’s 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended. Dr. Shaaltiel is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance, company contributions towards vocational studies, annual recreational allowances, a company car and a company phone. Dr. Shaaltiel is entitled to 29 working days of vacation.

 

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Einat Brill Almon, Ph.D. Dr. Brill Almon joined Protalix Ltd. on December 19, 2004 as its Vice President, Product Development, pursuant to an employment agreement effective on December 19, 2004 by and between Protalix Ltd. and Dr. Brill Almon, and currently serves as our Senior Vice President, Product Development. Pursuant to the employment agreement, her current monthly base salary is NIS 69,825 per month (approximately $18,500). She is also entitled to certain specified bonuses in the event that Protalix achieves certain specified clinical development milestones within specified timelines. In addition, vesting of all of Dr. Brill Almon’s options and restricted shares will be accelerated in full upon a Corporate Transaction or a Change in Control, as those terms are defined in the Company’s 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended. The employment agreement is terminable by either party on 60 days’ written notice for any reason and we may terminate the agreement for cause without notice. Dr. Brill Almon is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance, company contributions towards vocational studies, annual recreational allowances, a company car and a company phone at up to NIS 1,000 per month. Dr. Brill Almon is entitled to 29 working days of vacation.

 

Yossi Maimon, CPA. Mr. Maimon joined Protalix Ltd. as its Chief Financial Officer pursuant to an employment agreement effective as of October 15, 2006 by and between Protalix Ltd. and Mr. Maimon and currently serves as our Chief Financial Officer. Pursuant to the employment agreement, his current monthly base salary is NIS 69,825 (approximately $18,500) and Mr. Maimon is entitled to an annual discretionary bonus and additional discretionary bonuses in the event Protalix achieves significant financial milestones, subject to the Board’s sole discretion. The monthly salary is subject to cost of living adjustments from time to time. In addition, vesting of all of Mr. Maimon’s options and restricted shares will be accelerated in full upon a Corporate Transaction or a Change in Control, as those terms are defined in the Company’s 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended. The employment agreement is terminable by either party on 60 days’ written notice for any reason and we may terminate the agreement for cause without notice. Mr. Maimon is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance, company contributions towards vocational studies, annual recreational allowances, a company car and a company phone. Mr. Maimon is entitled to 29 working days of vacation.

 

Tzvi Palash. Mr. Palash joined Protalix Ltd. as its Chief Operating Officer pursuant to an employment agreement effective September 6, 2010 and currently serves as our Chief Operating Officer. Pursuant to the employment agreement, Mr. Palash’s current monthly base salary is NIS 65,550 (approximately $17,350) and Mr. Palash is entitled to an annual discretionary bonus for performance subject to the sole discretion of our compensation committee. The monthly salary is subject to cost of living adjustments from time to time as may be required by law. In addition, vesting of all of Mr. Palash’s options and restricted shares will be accelerated in full upon a Corporate Transaction or a Change in Control, as those terms are defined in the Company’s 2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended. The employment agreement is terminable by either party on 60 days’ written notice for any reason and we may terminate the agreement for cause without notice. Mr. Palash is entitled to be insured by Protalix Ltd. under a Manager’s Policy in lieu of severance, company contributions towards vocational studies, annual recreational allowances, a company car, a company phone, a company laptop and lodging accommodations in the Carmiel area. Mr. Palash is entitled to 27 working days of vacation.

 

Amended 2006 Stock Incentive Plan

 

Our Board of Directors and a majority of our shareholders approved our 2006 Stock Incentive Plan on December 14, 2006. Our shareholders approved an amendment to the plan on June 17, 2012 and subsequently on November 10, 2014. Of the 13,841,655 shares originally reserved for issuance under the plan, as amended, as of December 31, 2015, there are outstanding options and unvested restricted stock covering 7,085,510 shares of our common stock in the aggregate, subject to adjustment for a stock split or any future stock dividend or other similar change in our common stock or our capital structure. As of December 31, 2015, options to acquire 760,844 shares of common stock remain available for grant under the amended 2006 Stock Incentive Plan.

 

Our amended 2006 Stock Incentive Plan provides for the grant of stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights and dividend equivalent rights, collectively referred to as “awards.” Stock options granted under the amended 2006 Stock Incentive Plan may be either incentive stock options under the provisions of Section 422 of the Internal Revenue Code, or non-qualified stock options. Incentive stock options may be granted only to employees. Awards other than incentive stock options may be granted to employees, directors and consultants.

 

The amended 2006 Stock Incentive Plan is also designed to comply with the provisions of the Israeli Income Tax Ordinance New Version, 1961 (including as amended pursuant to Amendment 132 thereto) (the “tax ordinance”) and is intended to enable us to grant awards to grantees who are Israeli residents as follows: (i) awards to employees pursuant to Section 102 of the tax ordinance; and (ii) awards to non-employees pursuant to Section 3(I) of the tax ordinance. For this purpose, “employee” refers only to employees, office holders and directors of our company or a related entity excluding those who are considered “Controlling Shareholders” pursuant to, or otherwise excluded by, the tax ordinance. In accordance with the terms and conditions imposed by the Tax Ordinance, grantees who receive awards under the amended 2006 stock incentive plan may be afforded certain tax benefits in Israel as described below.

 

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Our Board of Directors or the Compensation Committee, referred to as the “plan administrator,” will administer our amended 2006 stock incentive plan, including selecting the grantees, determining the number of shares to be subject to each award, determining the exercise or purchase price of each award, and determining the vesting and exercise periods of each award.

 

The exercise price of stock options granted under the 2006 stock incentive plan must be equal to at least 100% of the fair market value of our common stock on the date of grant; however, in certain circumstances, grants may be made at a lower price to Israeli grantees who are residents of the State of Israel. If, however, incentive stock options are granted to an employee who owns stock possessing more than 10% of the voting power of all classes of our stock or the stock of any parent or subsidiary of our company, the exercise price of any incentive stock option granted must equal at least 110% of the fair market value on the grant date and the maximum term of these incentive stock options must not exceed five years. The maximum term of all other awards must not exceed 10 years (or five years in the case of an incentive stock option granted to any participant who owns stock representing more than 10% of the voting power of all classes of our stock or the stock of any parent or subsidiary of our company). The plan administrator will determine the exercise or purchase price (if any) of all other awards granted under the amended 2006 stock incentive plan.

 

Under the amended 2006 stock incentive plan, incentive stock options and options to Israeli grantees may not be sold, pledged, assigned, hypothecated, transferred or disposed of in any manner other than by will or by the laws of descent or distribution and may be exercised during the lifetime of the participant only by the participant. Other awards shall be transferable by will or by the laws of descent or distribution and to the extent and in the manner authorized by the plan administrator by gift or pursuant to a domestic relations order to members of the participant’s immediate family. The amended 2006 stock incentive plan permits the designation of beneficiaries by holders of awards, including incentive stock options.

 

If the service of a participant in the amended 2006 stock incentive plan is terminated for any reason other than cause, the participant may exercise awards that were vested as of the termination date for a period ending upon the earlier of 12 months from the date of termination (or such shorter or longer period set forth in the award agreement) or the expiration date of the awards unless otherwise determined by the plan administrator. If the service of a participant in the amended 2006 stock incentive plan is terminated for cause, the participant may exercise awards that were vested as of the termination date for a period ending upon the earlier of 14 days from the date of termination (or such shorter or longer period set forth in the award agreement) or the expiration date of the awards unless otherwise determined by the plan administrator.

 

In the event of a corporate transaction, all awards will terminate unless assumed by the successor corporation. Unless otherwise provided in a participant’s award agreement, in the event of a corporate transaction and with respect to the portion of each award that is assumed or replaced, then such portion will automatically become fully vested and exercisable immediately upon termination of a participant’s service if the participant is terminated by the successor company or us without cause within 12 months after the corporate transaction. With respect to the portion of each award that is not assumed or replaced, such portion will automatically become fully vested and exercisable immediately prior to the effective date of the corporate transaction so long as the participant’s service has not been terminated prior to such date.

 

In the event of a change in control, except as otherwise provided in a participant’s award agreement, following a change in control (other than a change in control that also is a corporate transaction) and upon the termination of a participant’s service without cause within 12 months after a change in control, each award of such participant that is outstanding at such time will automatically become fully vested and exercisable immediately upon the participant’s termination. In addition, the stock options and shares of restricted stock issued to each of our Named Executive Officers are subject to accelerated vesting immediately upon a corporate transaction or a change in control of our company, as defined in our amended 2006 stock incentive plan.

 

Under our amended 2006 stock incentive plan, a corporate transaction is generally defined as:

 

·                 a merger or consolidation in which we are not the surviving entity, except for the principal purpose of changing our company’s state of incorporation;

 

·                 the sale, transfer or other disposition of all or substantially all of our assets;

 

·                 the complete liquidation or dissolution of our company;

 

·                 any reverse merger in which we are the surviving entity but our shares of common stock outstanding immediately prior to such merger are converted or exchanged by virtue of the merger into other property, whether in the form of securities, cash or otherwise, or in which securities possessing more than forty percent (40%) of the total combined voting power of our outstanding securities are transferred to a person or persons different from those who held such securities immediately prior to such merger; or

 

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·                 acquisition in a single or series of related transactions by any person or related group of persons of beneficial ownership of securities possessing more than fifty percent (50%) of the total combined voting power of our outstanding securities but excluding any such transaction or series of related transactions that the plan administrator determines not to be a corporate transaction (provided however that the plan administrator shall have no discretion in connection with a corporate transaction for the purchase of all or substantially all of our shares unless the principal purpose of such transaction is changing our company’s state of incorporation).

 

Under our amended 2006 stock incentive plan, a change of control is defined as:

 

·                 the direct or indirect acquisition by any person or related group of persons of beneficial ownership of securities possessing more than fifty percent (50%) of the total combined voting power of our outstanding securities pursuant to a tender or exchange offer made directly to our shareholders and which a majority of the members of our board (who have generally been on our board for at least 12 months) who are not affiliates or associates of the offeror do not recommend shareholders accept the offer; or

 

·                 a change in the composition of our board over a period of 12 months or less, such that a majority of our board members ceases, by reason of one or more contested elections for board membership, to be comprised of individuals who were previously directors of our company.

 

Unless terminated sooner, the amended 2006 stock incentive plan will automatically terminate on December 31, 2020. Our Board of Directors has the authority to amend, suspend or terminate our amended 2006 stock incentive plan. No amendment, suspension or termination of the amended 2006 stock incentive plan shall adversely affect any rights under awards already granted to a participant. To the extent necessary to comply with applicable provisions of federal securities laws, state corporate and securities laws, the Internal Revenue Code, the rules of any applicable stock exchange or national market system, and the rules of any non-U.S. jurisdiction applicable to awards granted to residents therein (including the Tax Ordinance), we shall obtain shareholder approval of any such amendment to the 2006 stock incentive plan in such a manner and to such a degree as required.

 

Impact of Israeli Tax Law

 

The awards granted to employees pursuant to Section 102 of the Tax Ordinance under the amended 2006 stock incentive plan may be designated by us as approved options under the capital gains alternative, or as approved options under the ordinary income tax alternative.

 

To qualify for these benefits, certain requirements must be met, including registration of the options in the name of a trustee. Each option, and any shares of common stock acquired upon the exercise of the option, must be held by the trustee for a period commencing on the date of grant and deposit into trust with the trustee and ending 24 months thereafter.

 

Under the terms of the capital gains alternative, we may not deduct expenses pertaining to the options for tax purposes.

 

Under the amended 2006 stock incentive plan, we may also grant to employees options pursuant to Section 102(c) of the Tax Ordinance that are not required to be held in trust by a trustee. This alternative, while facilitating immediate exercise of vested options and sale of the underlying shares, will subject the optionee to the marginal income tax rate of up to 50% as well as payments to the National Insurance Institute and health tax on the date of the sale of the shares or options. Under the 2006 stock incentive plan, we may also grant to non-employees options pursuant to Section 3(I) of the Tax Ordinance. Under that section, the income tax on the benefit arising to the optionee upon the exercise of options and the issuance of common stock is generally due at the time of exercise of the options.

 

These options shall be further subject to the terms of the tax ruling that has been obtained by Protalix Ltd. from the Israeli tax authorities in connection with the merger. Under the tax ruling, the options issued by us in connection with the assumption of Section 102 options previously issued by Protalix Ltd. under the capital gains alternative shall be issued to a trustee, shall be designated under the capital gains alternative and the issuance date of the original options shall be deemed the issuance date for the assumed options for the calculation of the respective holding period.

 

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Compensation of Directors

 

The following table sets forth information with respect to compensation of our non-employee directors during fiscal year 2015. The fees to our current directors were paid by Protalix Ltd.

 

Name   Fees Earned or Paid in Cash ($)   Option Award(s) ($)   Total ($)
Shlomo Yanai   200,000   96,096   296,096
Zeev Bronfeld   80,000       80,000
Amos Bar Shalev   80,000       80,000
Yodfat Harel Buchris   80,000       80,000
Roger D. Kornberg   55,000       55,000
Aharon Schwartz   40,000       40,000

 

Directors’ fees paid to each of Zeev Bronfeld and Yodfat Harel Buchris are paid to the applicable director’s employer in accordance with arrangements between the director and the employer.

 

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

 

Our Compensation Committee currently consists of Messrs. Bar Shalev and Bronfeld and Mrs. Harel Buchris. No member of our Compensation Committee or any executive officer of our company or of Protalix Ltd. has a relationship that would constitute an interlocking relationship with executive officers or directors of another entity. No Compensation Committee member is or was an officer or employee of ours or of Protalix Ltd. Further, none of our executive officers serves on the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity that has one or more executive officers serving as a member of our Board of Directors or Compensation Committee.

 

Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters

 

Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management

 

The following table sets forth information, as of March 10, 2016, regarding beneficial ownership of our common stock:

 

· each person who is known by us to own beneficially more than 5% of our common stock;

 

· each director;

 

· each of our Chief Executive Officer, our Executive Vice President, Research and Development, our Senior Vice President, Product Development, our Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Operating Officer; and

 

· all of our directors and executive officers collectively.

 

Unless otherwise noted, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of our common stock beneficially owned by each of them. For purposes of these tables, a person is deemed to be the beneficial owner of securities that can be acquired by such person within 60 days from March 10, 2016 upon exercise of options, warrants and convertible securities. Each beneficial owner’s percentage ownership is determined by assuming that options, warrants and convertible securities that are held by such person (but not those held by any other person) and that are exercisable within such 60 days from such date have been exercised. The information set forth below is based upon information obtained from the beneficial owners, upon information in our possession regarding their respective holdings and upon information filed by the holders with the SEC. The percentages of beneficial ownership are based on 99,808,238 shares of our common stock outstanding as of March 10, 2016.

 

The address for all directors and officers is c/o Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc., 2 Snunit Street, Science Park, P.O. Box 455, Carmiel, Israel, 20100.

 

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Name and Address of Beneficial Owner   Amount and Nature of Beneficial Ownership     Percentage of
Class (%)
 
Board of Directors and Executive Officers            
Shlomo Yanai (1)     87,500       *  
Moshe Manor (2)     337,500       *  
Amos Bar Shalev     1,680       *  
Zeev Bronfeld (3)     2,162,481       2.2  
Yodfat Harel Buchris (4)     137,424       *  
Roger D. Kornberg, Ph.D. (5)     50,000       *  
Aharon Schwartz, Ph.D.     --       --  
Einat Brill Almon, Ph.D. (6)     677,210       *  
Yossi Maimon (7)     550,938       *  
Tzvi Palash (8)     286,875       *  
Yoseph Shaaltiel, Ph.D. (9)     1,310,269       1.3  
All executive officers and directors as a
group (11 persons) (10)
    5,601,877       5.5  
5% Holders                
Baillie Gifford & Co. (11)     6,406,099       6.4  
Camber Capital Management LLC (12)     13,275,000       13.3  
Pfizer Inc. (13)     5,649,079       5.7  
Opaleye Management Inc. (14)     8,100,000       8.1  

__________________________________

* less than 1%.

 

(1) Consists of 87,500 of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 62,500 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(2) Consists of 337,500 of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 562,500 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(3) Consists of shares of our common stock held directly by Mr. Bronfeld.

 

(4) Represents shares held by YP & 6 Partners Ltd. Mrs. Harel Buchris is a director and shareholder of YP & 6 Partners Ltd. Mrs. Harel Buchris disclaims beneficial ownership of these shares except to the extent of her pecuniary interest therein.

 

(5) Consists of 50,000 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options.

 

(6) Consists of 503,772 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 173,438 restricted shares of our common stock that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 187,500 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 11,562 restricted shares of our common stock that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(7) Consists of 10,000 outstanding shares of our common stock held by Mr. Maimon, 367,500 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 173,438 restricted shares of our common stock that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 187,500 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 11,562 restricted shares of our common stock that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(8) Consists of 191,250 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 95,625 restricted shares of our common stock that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 93,750 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 6,375 restricted shares of our common stock that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

  13  

 

 

(9) Consists of 463,754 outstanding shares of our common stock held by Dr. Shaaltiel, 649,640 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 196,875 restricted shares of our common stock that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 206,250 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 13,125 restricted shares of our common stock that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(10) Consists of 2,775,339 outstanding share of our common stock, 2,187,162 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 639,376 restricted shares of our common stock that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016. Does not include 1,300,000 shares of our common stock underlying options that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016 and 42,624 restricted shares of our common stock that will not vest within 60 days of March 10, 2016.

 

(11) Based solely on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 8, 2016 by Baillie Gifford & Co. for December 31, 2015.

 

(12) Based solely on a Schedule 13F-HR filed on February 12, 2016 by Camber Capital Management LLC for the period ended December 31, 2015. Does not include shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of our 4.50% convertible notes due 2018 held by Camber Capital Management.

 

(13) Based solely on a Schedule 13G filed on October 23, 2015 by Pfizer Inc.

 

(14) Based solely on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 12, 2016 by Opaleye Management Inc. for December 31, 2015.

 

Equity Compensation Plan Information

 

The following table provides information as of December 31, 2015 with respect to the shares of our common stock that may be issued under our existing equity compensation plan.

 

   

A

   

B

   

C

 

Plan Category

 
 

Number of Securities

to be Issued

Upon Exercise of

Outstanding Options

 
   

Weighted Average

Exercise Price of

Outstanding Options

 
   

Number of Securities Remaining

Available for Future Issuance

Under Equity Compensation Plans (Excluding
Securities Reflected in

Column A)

 
 
Equity Compensation Plans Approved by Shareholders     7,085,510     $ 3.43       760,844  
Equity Compensation Plans Not Approved by Shareholders     631,866     $ 10.24       -  
Total     7,717,376     $ 3.99       760,844  

 

Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence

 

Corporate Governance and Independent Directors

 

In compliance with the listing requirements of the NYSE MKT, we have a comprehensive plan of corporate governance for the purpose of defining responsibilities, setting high standards of professional and personal conduct and assuring compliance with such responsibilities and standards. We currently regularly monitor developments in the area of corporate governance to ensure we are in compliance with the standards and regulations required by the NYSE MKT. A summary of our corporate governance measures follows.

 

Independent Directors

 

We believe a majority of the members of our Board of Directors are independent from management. When making determinations from time to time regarding independence, the Board of Directors will reference the listing standards adopted by the NYSE MKT as well as the independence standards set forth in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC under that Act. We anticipate our Board of Directors will analyze whether a director is independent by evaluating, among other factors, the following:

 

·                 Whether the member of the Board of Directors has any material relationship with us, either directly, or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with us;

 

  14  

 

  

·                 Whether the member of the Board of Directors is a current employee of our company or any of our subsidiaries, or was an employee of our company or any of our subsidiaries within three years preceding the date of determination;

 

·                 Whether the member of the Board of Directors is, or in the three years preceding the date of determination has been, affiliated with or employed by (i) a present internal or external auditor of our company or any affiliate of such auditor or (ii) any former internal or external auditor of our company or any affiliate of such auditor, which performed services for us within three years preceding the date of determination;

 

·                 Whether the member of the Board of Directors is, or in the three years preceding the date of determination has been, part of an interlocking directorate, in which any of our executive officers serve on the Compensation Committee of another company that concurrently employs the member as an executive officer;

 

·                 Whether the member of the Board of Directors receives any compensation from us, other than fees or compensation for service as a member of the Board of Directors and any committee of the Board of Directors and reimbursement for reasonable expenses incurred in connection with such service and for reasonable educational expenses associated with Board of Directors or committee membership matters;

 

·                 Whether an immediate family member of the member of the Board of Directors is a current executive officer of our company or was an executive officer of our company within three years preceding the date of determination;

 

·                 Whether an immediate family member of the member of the Board of Directors is, or in the three years preceding the date of determination has been, affiliated with or employed in a professional capacity by (i) a present internal or external auditor of ours or any of our affiliates or (ii) any former internal or external auditor of our company or any affiliate of ours which performed services for us within three years preceding the date of determination; and

 

·                 Whether an immediate family member of the member of the Board of Directors is, or in the three years preceding the date of determination has been, part of an interlocking directorate, in which any of our executive officers serve on the Compensation Committee of another company that concurrently employs the immediate family member of the member of the Board of Directors as an executive officer.

 

The above list is not exhaustive and we anticipate that the Audit Committee will consider all other factors which could assist it in its determination that a director will have no material relationship with us that could compromise that director’s independence.

 

Under these standards, our Board of Directors has determined that Messrs. Bar Shalev and Bronfeld and Mrs. Harel Buchris are considered “independent” pursuant to the rules of the NYSE MKT and Section 10A(m)(3) of the Exchange Act. In addition, our Board of Directors has determined that at least two of these directors are able to read and understand fundamental financial statements and have substantial business experience that results in their financial sophistication, qualifying them for membership on our audit committee. Our Board of Directors has also determined that Mr. Bar Shalev, Mr. Bronfeld, Mrs. Harel Buchris, Dr. Kornberg, Dr. Schwartz and Mr. Yanai are “independent” pursuant to the rules of the NYSE MKT.

 

The position of chairman of the board is not held by our chief executive officer at this time. The Board of Directors does not have a policy mandating the separation of these functions. We believe it is in our best interest that Mr. Yanai serve as the chairman of our board. This decision was based on Mr. Yanai’s vast global operating experience in the life-science and pharmaceutical and agro-chemicals industry as well as the global perspective he brings to our Board of Directors, incorporating his industry and board leadership experience and his distinguished military service. Our non-management directors hold formal meetings, separate from management, at least twice per year. We have no formal policy regarding attendance by our directors at annual shareholders meetings, although we encourage such attendance and anticipate most of our directors will attend these meetings. Messrs. Yanai, Manor, Bronfeld, Bar Shalev and Dr. Schwartz and Mrs. Harel Buchris attended our 2015 annual meeting of shareholders.

 

The Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

 

Our Board of Directors oversees an enterprise-wide approach to risk management, designed to support the achievement of business objectives, including organizational and strategic objectives, to improve long-term organizational performance and enhance shareholder value. The involvement of our Board of Directors in setting our business strategy is a key part of its assessment of management’s plans for risk management and its determination of what constitutes an appropriate level of risk for the company. The participation of our Board of Directors in our risk oversight process includes receiving regular reports from members of senior management on areas of material risk to our company, including operational, financial, legal and regulatory, and strategic and reputational risks. While the full board has the ultimate oversight responsibility for the risk management process, various committees of the board also have responsibility for risk management. For example, financial risks, including internal controls, are overseen by the audit committee and risks that may be implicated by our executive compensation programs are overseen by the compensation committee. Upon identification of a risk, the assigned board committee or our full Board of Directors discuss or review risk management and risk mitigation strategies. Additional review or reporting on enterprise risks is conducted as needed or as requested by our Board of Directors or a committee thereof.

 

  15  

 

  

Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services

 

The following table sets forth fees billed to us by our independent registered public accounting firm during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 for: (i) services rendered for the audit of our annual financial statements and the review of our quarterly financial statements; (ii) services by our independent registered public accounting firm that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of our financial statements and that are not reported as Audit Fees; (iii) services rendered in connection with tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning; and (iv) all other fees for services rendered.

 

    Year Ended December 31,  
    2015     2014  
Audit Fees   $ 231,000     $ 246,000  
Audit Related Fees   $ 34,000     $ 10,000  
Tax Fees   $ 45,600     $ 51,380  
All Other Fees     -       -  

 

Policy on Audit Committee Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services of Independent Auditors

 

Prior to entering into the engagement letter with our independent registered accountants, our Audit Committee approved the 2016 audit fees. For fiscal year 2016, our Audit Committee has approved fees for certain permissible non-audit services to be rendered by our independent registered accounting firm.

 

  16  

 

  

PART IV

 

Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules

 

The following documents are filed as part of this report:

 

3.   Exhibits.

 

       

Incorporated by Reference

   

Exhibit Number

 


Exhibit Description

 


Form

 

File Number

 

Exhibit

 

Date

 

Filed Herewith

3.1  

Certificate of Incorporation of the Company

 

  8-K   001-33357   3.1   April 1, 2016    
3.2  

Bylaws of the Company

 

  8-K   001-33357   3.6   April 1, 2016    
4.1  

Form of Restricted Stock Agreement/Notice

 

  8-K   001-33357   4.1  

July 18, 2012

 

   
4.2  

Indenture, dated as of September 18, 2013, between Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as Trustee

 

 

8-K

 

      4.1  

September 18, 2013

 

   
4.3   Form of 4.50% Convertible Note due 2018  

8-K

 

  001-33357   4.2  

September 18, 2013

 

   
10.1   2006 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended   Def 14A   001-33357   Annex A  

October 9, 2014

 

   
10.2  

Employment Agreement between Protalix Ltd. and Yoseph Shaaltiel, dated as of September 1, 2004

 

  8-K   001-33357   10.2   January 8, 2007    
10.3  

Employment Agreement between Protalix Ltd. and Einat Almon, dated as of December 19, 2004

 

  8-K   001-33357   10.3   January 8, 2007    
10.4  

Employment Agreement between Protalix Ltd. and Yossi Maimon, dated as of October 15, 2006

 

  8-K   001-33357   10.5   January 8, 2007    
10.5  

Lease Agreement between Protalix Ltd. and Angel Science Park (99) Ltd., dated as of October 28, 2003 as amended on April 18, 2005

 

  8-K   001-33357   10.9   January 8, 2007    
10.6  

Stock Option Award Agreement grant by and between the Company and Steven Rubin, dated as of December 31, 2006

 

  10-K   001-33357   10.13   March 30, 2007    
10.7  

First Amendment to the December 31, 2006 Stock Option Award Agreement by and between the Company and Steven Rubin, effective as of February 28, 2007

 

  10-K   001-33357   10.16   March 30, 2007    

 

  17  

 

  

10.8  

Scientific Advisory Board Agreement dated August 5, 2007 by and between the Company and Aaron Ciechanover, M.D.

 

  8-K   001-33357   10.1   August 6, 2007    
10.9   Unprotected Lease Agreement   10-K   001-33357   10.21  

March 17, 2008

 

 

   
10.10   Employment Agreement by and between Protalix Ltd., and Tzvi Palash dated as of August 29, 2010   8-K   001-33357   10.1   September 7, 2010    
                         
10.11†   License Agreement between Protalix BioTherapeutics Ltd. and Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, Inc.   10-Q   001-33357   10.2   November 8, 2010    
                         
10.12†   Amended and Restated Agreement between Protalix Ltd. and Comercio e Serviços Ltda. dated June 17, 2013   10-Q   001-33357   10.1   May 8, 2014    
                         
10.13†   Technology Transfer and Supply Agreement made as of June 18, 2013 by and between Protalix Ltd. and Fundação Oswaldo Cruz   10-Q   001-33357   10.3   May 8, 2014    
                         
10.14   Employment Agreement with Moshe Manor dated September 28, 2014   8-K   001-33357   10.1   September 29, 2014    
                         
10.15†   Amended and Restated Exclusive License and Supply Agreement by and between Pfizer Inc. and Protalix Ltd., dated October 12, 2015   10-Q/A   001-33357   10.1   December 11, 2015    
                         
21.1  

Subsidiaries

 

  10-K   001-33357   21.1  

February 26, 2010

 

   
23.1  

Consent of Kesselman & Kesselman, Certified Public Accountants (Isr.), A member of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, independent registered public accounting firm for the Registrant

 

  10-K   001-33357   23.1  

March 8, 2016

 

   
24.1   Power of Attorney (included on the Signatures page of the Annual Report on Form 10-K).   10-K   001-33357      

March 8, 2016

 

   
                         
31.1   Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002                   X
                         
31.2   Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002                   X
                         
32.1   18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Certification of Chief Executive Officer                   X
                         
32.2   18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Certification of Chief Financial Officer                   X
                         

101.INS   XBRL INSTANCE FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.INS March 8, 2016  
101.SCH   XBRL SHEMA FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.SCH March 8, 2016  
101.CAL   XBRL CALCULATION FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.CAL March 8, 2016  
101.DEF   XBRL DEFINITION FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.DEF March 8, 2016  
101.LAB   XBRL LABEL FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.LAB March 8, 2016  
101.PRE   XBRL PRESENTATION FILE 10-K 001-33357 101.PRE March 8, 2016  

_____________________

 

† Portions of this exhibit were omitted and have been filed separately with the Secretary of the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to the Registrant’s application requesting confidential treatment under Rule 24b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

  18  

 

  

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) 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, thereunto duly authorized, as of April 22, 2016.

 

  PROTALIX BIOTHERAPEUTICS, INC.
     
  By: /s/ Moshe Manor        
    Moshe Manor

 

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

Signature   Title   Date
         
/s/ Moshe Manor   President, Chief Executive Officer   April 22, 2016
Moshe Manor   (Principal Executive Officer) and Director    
         
/s/ Yossi Maimon   Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and   April 22, 2016
Yossi Maimon   Secretary (Principal Financial    
    and Accounting Officer)    
         
/s/ *   Chairman of the Board   April 22, 2016
Shlomo Yanai        
         
/s/ *   Director   April 22, 2016
Amos Bar Shalev        
         
/s/ *   Director   April 22, 2016
Zeev Bronfeld        
         
/s/ *   Director   April 22, 2016
Yodfat Harel Buchris        
         
/s/ *   Director   April 22, 2016
Roger D. Kornberg, Ph.D.        
         
/s/ *   Director   April 22, 2016
Aharon Schwartz, Ph.D.        

  

By: /s/ Moshe Manor  
  Moshe Manor  

 

  19  

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