Securities Registration: Employee Benefit Plan (s-8)

Large Accelerated filer

Accelerated filer

Non-accelerated filer

Smaller reporting company

Emerging growth company

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 23, 2022

Registration No. 333-

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


Delaware		47-2309515
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

18575 Jamboree Road, Suite 275-S Irvine, California		92612
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)		(Zip Code)

Inducement Awards

2021 Equity Incentive Plan

2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

(Full titles of the plans)

Gregory J. Flesher

President and Chief Executive Officer

Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

18575 Jamboree Road, Suite 275-S

Irvine, California 92612

(858) 283-0280

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copies to:

Jason Kent

Cooley LLP

55 Hudson Yards

New York, New York 10001

(212) 479-6000

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

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

The information called for by Part I of Form S-8 is omitted from this Registration Statement in accordance with Rule 428 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the instructions to Form S-8. In accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) and the instructions to Form S-8, such documents are not being filed with the Commission either as part of this Registration Statement or as prospectuses or prospectus supplements pursuant to Rule 424 of the Securities Act.

PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 3.

Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

The Registrant hereby incorporates by reference into this Registration Statement the following documents previously filed by the Registrant with the Commission:

(a)	The Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, filed with the Commission on March 23, 2022;

(b)	The Registrant’s Current Reports on Form 8-K (excluding any information and exhibits furnished under either Item 2.02 or Item 7.01 thereof), filed with the Commission on January 24, 2022; February 2, 2022; and March 7, 2022; and

(c)

The description of the Registrant’s Common Stock contained in the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed on April 6, 2021 (File No. 001-40315) under Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), including any amendment or report filed for the purpose of updating such description.

All documents filed by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the date of this Registration Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered hereby have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents; provided, however, that documents or portions thereof that are furnished and not filed in accordance with the rules of the Commission shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement. Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement herein or in any other subsequently filed document that also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not constitute a part of this Registration Statement, except as so modified or superseded.

Item 4.

Description of Securities.

Not applicable.

Item 5.

Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

Not applicable.

Item 6.

Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

The Registrant is incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “General Corporation Law”) authorizes a court to award, or a corporation’s board of directors to grant, indemnity to directors and officers in terms sufficiently broad to permit such indemnification under certain circumstances for liabilities, including reimbursement for expenses incurred, arising under the Securities Act. The Registrant’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation permits indemnification of its directors, officers, employees and other agents to the maximum extent permitted by the General Corporation Law, and the Registrant’s amended and restated bylaws provide that the Registrant will indemnify its directors and officers and permit the Registrant to indemnify its employees and other agents, in each case to the maximum extent permitted by the General Corporation Law.

The Registrant has entered into indemnification agreements with its directors and officers, whereby the Registrant has agreed to indemnify its directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by law, including indemnification against expenses and liabilities incurred in legal proceedings to which the director or officer was, or is threatened to be made, a party by reason of the fact that such director or officer is or was a director, officer, employee, or agent of the Registrant, provided that such director or officer acted in good faith and in a manner that the director or officer reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interest of the Registrant.

At present, there is no pending litigation or proceeding involving a director or officer of the Registrant regarding which indemnification is sought, nor is the Registrant aware of any threatened litigation that may result in claims for indemnification.

The Registrant maintains insurance policies that indemnify its directors and officers against various liabilities arising under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act that might be incurred by any director or officer in his or her capacity as such.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.

Not applicable.

Item 8.

Exhibits.

The exhibits to this Registration Statement are listed below:


Exhibit Number		Description

4.1		Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the Commission on April 13, 2021).

4.2		Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the Commission on April 13, 2021).

4.3		Form of Common Stock Certificate (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on April 5, 2021).

4.4		Amended and Restated Investors’ Rights Agreement, by and among the Registrant and certain of its stockholders, dated December 9, 2020 (incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on March 19, 2021).

5.1*		Opinion of Cooley LLP.

23.1*		Consent of independent registered public accounting firm.

23.2*		Consent of Cooley LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).


24.1*		Power of Attorney (included on the signature page).

99.1		Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on April 5, 2021).

99.2		Forms of (i) Stock Option Grant Notice, Stock Option Agreement and Notice of Exercise and (ii) Stock Option Grant Notice - International, Stock Option Agreement - International and Notice of Exercise - International under the Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on April 5, 2021).

99.3		Forms of (i) Restricted Stock Unit Award Grant Notice and Award Agreement and (ii) Restricted Stock Unit Award Grant Notice - International and Award Agreement - International under the Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on April 5, 2021).

99.4		Forms of Stock Option Grant Notice, Stock Option Agreement and Notice of Exercise for Inducement Grant Outside of the Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, filed with the Commission on November 12, 2021).

99.5		Forms of RSU Award Grant Notice and Award Agreement (RSU Award) for Inducement Grant Outside of the Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, filed with the Commission on November 12, 2021).

99.5		Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-254534), filed with the Commission on April 5, 2021).

107*		Filing Fee Table

Item 9.

Undertakings.

(a)	The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:

(1)

To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement:

(i)

To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;

(ii)

To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the Registration Statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective Registration Statement; and

(iii)

To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement or any material change to such information in the Registration Statement.

Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the Registration Statement is on Form S-8, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement.

(2)

That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(3)

To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

(b)

The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered herein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(c)

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Irvine, State of California, on March 23, 2022.


RENEO PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

By:		/s/ Gregory J. Flesher
		Gregory J. Flesher
		President and Chief Executive Officer

POWER OF ATTORNEY

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Gregory J. Flesher and Vineet R. Jindal, and each one of them, as his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in their name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this registration statement, and to sign any registration statement for the same offering covered by this registration statement that is to be effective on filing pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and all post-effective amendments thereto, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or his substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.


Signature	Title	Date

/s/ Gregory J. Flesher Gregory J. Flesher	President and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer)	March 23, 2022

/s/ Vineet R. Jindal Vineet R. Jindal	Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)	March 23, 2022

/s/ Michael Grey Michael Grey	Executive Chairman	March 23, 2022

/s/ Lon Cardon Lon Cardon, Ph.D.	Director	March 23, 2022

/s/ Eric M. Dube Eric M. Dube, Ph.D.	Director	March 23, 2022

/s/ Paul W. Hoelscher Paul W. Hoelscher	Director	March 23, 2022


Signature	Title	Date

/s/ Edward T. Mathers	Director	March 23, 2022
Edward T. Mathers

/s/ Bali Muralidhar	Director	March 23, 2022
Bali Muralidhar, M.D., Ph.D.

/s/ Niall O’Donnell	Director	March 23, 2022
Niall O’Donnell, Ph.D.

/s/ Stacey D. Seltzer	Director	March 23, 2022
Stacey D. Seltzer