Company: TVRD
Filing Date: 2025-02-14
Form Type: S-4/A
Source: 0001104659-25-013053
Chunk: 268

Company: Tvardi Therapeutics, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-02-14
Form: S-4/A
Chunk 268
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 proposals that advanced to the second-round process were selected based on the Transaction Committee’s evaluation of certain characteristics, including the strength of such counterparty’s product candidate programs and intellectual property from clinical, regulatory and commercial perspectives as well as financial terms of the counterparty’s proposal relative to the risks and potential benefits of such counterparty. In evaluating the strength of each counterparty’s product candidate programs and intellectual property, the Transaction Committee considered factors (to the extent such information was then-available to the Transaction Committee) such as the stage of each counterparty’s product candidate development programs, the strength of the pre-clinical and clinical data, the number of programs as well as the potential for success and level of program risk. In evaluating the financial terms of each counterparty’s proposal, the Transaction Committee considered factors such as the rationale for the counterparty’s valuation, the need for additional financing to achieve clinical milestones, the quality of the counterparty’s existing investors, the ability of the counterparty to meet the reporting requirements of a public company, the timeline for value creation for Cara’s stockholders as well as the experience of the counterparty’s management. The Transaction Committee also determined at that meeting that, despite a potentially quicker pathway to closing, the proposal for a cash tender offer for Cara would not be expected to represent an attractive outcome to Cara’s stockholders compared to the potential reverse merger candidates, including Tvardi, due to the aggregate valuation being meaningfully below Cara’s then-anticipated cash balance at consummation and the proposal not providing for any ability to share in future increases in value.

Between September 4, 2024 and September 12, 2024, the Transaction Committee, together with representatives of Cara management and representatives of Piper Sandler, met with six of the eight second round counterparties, including with representatives of Tvardi on September 11, 2024, during which each counterparty presented information regarding such counterparty’s product candidates and business plan, valuation, anticipated funding needs, access to potential new biotech-focused investors and preparedness to transact with Cara in a timely manner. One of the eight counterparties was not responsive to further email and telephone requests to schedule a management presentation. The last of the eight counterparties asked to be removed from consideration by Cara due to recent leadership and clinical strategy changes.

On September 16, 2024, the Transaction Committee held a videoconference meeting with representatives of Cara management, Piper Sandler and Cara’s regular outside legal counsel also attending. At such meeting, the Transaction