UNITED STATES


SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION


WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549







FORM 20-F





(Mark One)


 ̈ REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934





OR





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


For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010





OR





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





OR





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


For the transition period from ____________to ___________.





Commission file number: 000-51310





XTL BIOPHARMACEUTICALS LTD.


(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)





Israel


(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)





Herzliya Business Park


85 Medinat Hayehudim, Building G, PO Box 4033


Herzliya Pituach 46140, Israel





(Address of principal executive offices)





David Grossman


Chief Executive Officer


85 Medinat Hayehudim, Building G, PO Box 4033


Herzliya Pituach 46140, Israel


Tel: +972-9-955-7080


Fax: +972-9-951-9727





(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)





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





American Depositary Shares, each representing

two Ordinary Shares, par value NIS 0.1

None(Title of Class)

(Name of each exchange on which registered)





Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:None.




Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:None.





Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer's classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.




10,887,081 American Depositary Shares                     191,711,006 Ordinary Shares




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




If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.




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  ̈    No x




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




Large accelerated filer  ̈Accelerated filer £                  Non-accelerated filer x




Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:




£  U.S. GAAP
x
International Financial Reporting Standards as issued
£  Otherby the International Accounting Standards Board




If “Other” has been check in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.




Item 17  o    Item 18 £




Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).




Yes o    No x








XTL BIOPHARMACEUTICALS LTD.


ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 20-F





TABLE OF CONTENTS





PageSPECIAL CAUTIONARY NOTICE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

1PART IITEM 1
Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers

2ITEM 2
Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable

2ITEM 3
Key Information

2ITEM 4
Information on the Company

23ITEM 4A
Unresolved Staff Comments

38ITEM 5
Operating and Financial Review and Prospects

39ITEM 6
Directors, Senior Management and Employees

56ITEM 7
Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions

66ITEM 8
Financial Information

67ITEM 9
The Offer and Listing

68ITEM 10
Additional Information

70ITEM 11
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

88ITEM 12
Description of Securities other than Equity Securities

89PART IIITEM 13
Defaults, Dividend Arrearages and Delinquencies

90ITEM 14
Material Modifications to the Rights of Security Holders and Use of Proceeds

90ITEM 15
Controls and Procedures

91ITEM 16
Reserved

91ITEM 16A
Audit Committee Financial Expert

91ITEM 16B
Code of Ethics

91ITEM 16C
Principal Accountant Fees And Services

91ITEM 16D
Exemptions From The Listing Standards For Audit Committees

92ITEM 16E
Purchases Of Equity Securities By The Issuer And Affiliated Purchasers

92ITEM 16G
Corporate Governance

92PART IIIITEM 17
Financial Statements

93ITEM 18
Financial Statements

93ITEM 19
Exhibits

93SIGNATURES

96





This annual report on Form 20-F contains trademarks and trade names of XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., including our name and logo.







SPECIAL CAUTIONARY NOTICE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS





Certain matters discussed in this report, including matters discussed under the caption “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” may constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The words “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek,” “estimate,” and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Our actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in these forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, including, without limitation, those discussed under “Item 3. Key Information–Risk Factors,” “Item 4.- Information on the Company,” “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects,” and elsewhere in this report, as well as factors which may be identified from time to time in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, or in the documents where such forward-looking statements appear. All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to us are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements.




The forward-looking statements contained in this report reflect our views and assumptions only as of the date this report is signed. Except as required by law, we assume no responsibility for updating any forward-looking statements.




1


PART I





Unless the context requires otherwise, references in this report to “XTL,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and our wholly-owned subsidiaries, Xtepo Ltd, XTL Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. and XTL Development, Inc.  We have prepared our consolidated financial statements in United States, or US, dollars and in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS. All references herein to “dollars” or “$” are to US dollars, and all references to “Shekels” or “NIS” are to New Israeli Shekels.




ITEM 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS




Not applicable




ITEM 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE




Not applicable




ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION




Selected Financial Data




The tables below present selected financial data for the fiscal years ended as of December 31, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007 and 2006. We have derived the selected financial data for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, from our audited consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this report and prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). Until 2009, we have presented our financial statements using the accounting standards and principles as set forth under United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“US GAAP”). Since 2009, we have prepared our consolidated financial statements in accordance with IFRS. The selected financial data for the fiscal years ended as of December 31, 2010, 2009, 2008 and 2007 are presented in accordance with IFRS. The selected financial data for the fiscal year ended as of December 31, 2006 is presented in accordance with US GAAP and have been derived from our consolidated financial statements that are not included in this annual report. The information presented below in IFRS for the fiscal years ending 2010, 2009, 2008 and 2007 is not comparable to the information presented in US GAAP for the fiscal year ending 2006. You should read the selected financial data in conjunction with “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects,” “Item 8. Financial Information” and “Item 18. Financial Statements.”




2





In accordance with IFRS:




Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive income:




Year ended December 31,2010


2009


2008


2007U.S dollars in thousands (except per share data)Revenues


-



-



5,940



907Cost of revenues


-



-



1,841



110Gross profit


-



-



4,099



797Research and development costs


64



-



11,722



11,500General and administrative expenses (income)


1,222



(2,429
) *)


3,937



7,596Impairment loss of intangible asset


-



-



7,500



-Other gains (losses), net


30



139



288



(8
)Operating income (loss)


(1,256
)


2,568



(18,772
)


(18,307
)Finance income


6



6



331



668Finance costs


7



10



17



30Financial income (costs), net


(1
)


(4
)


314



638Income (loss) before taxes on income


(1,257
)


2,564



(18,458
)


(17,669
)tax benefit


-



(23
)


(31
)


(206
)Net income (loss) for the year attributable to equity holders of the parent


(1,257
)


2,587



(18,427
)


(17,463
)Basic and diluted earnings (loss) per share (in U.S. dollars)


(0.011
)


0.044



(0.315
)


(0.382
)Weighted average number of issued ordinary shares


113,397,846



58,561,065



58,553,864



45,698,564




*)
Including reduced expenses which result from forfeiture of shares that were contingent on the performance of the former chairman and CEO, see also Note 15b to the financial statements.





Consolidated Statements of Financial Position Data:





As of December 31,2010


2009


2008


2007U.S dollars in thousandsCash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and trading and marketable securities


1,066



412



2,924



12,977Working capital


259



(151
)


1,433



8,532Total assets


3,797



715



3,402



23,378Long term obligations


-



-



-



131Total shareholders' equity


2,834



7



1,474



17,878




3





In accordance with US GAAP:





Statements of Operation Data (In U.S dollars in thousands (except per share data)):





Year ended

December 31,

2006Revenues:Reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses


-License


454454Cost of revenues:Reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses


-License


5454Gross profit


400Research and development


10,229In-process research and development


-General and administrative expenses


5,576Business development costs


641Operating loss


(16,046
)Financial and other income, net


1,141Income taxes


(227
)Loss for the period


(15,132
)Basic and diluted loss per share (in U.S. dollars)


(0.375
)Weighted average number of issued ordinary shares


40,347,459




Balance Sheet Data (In U.S. dollars in thousands):





As of December

31, 2006Cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and trading and marketable securities


25,347Working capital


22,694Total assets


26,900Long term obligations


738Total shareholders' equity


22,760




4


Acquisition of the use patent on Erythropoietin





On March 18, 2009, we entered into an asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal Ltd. (hereinafter “Bio-Gal”), a private company, for the rights to a use patent on Recombinant Human Erythropoietin, or rHuEPO, for the treatment of multiple myeloma, or MM. On December 31, 2009, we amended the asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal, so that XTL shall acquire all the issued and outstanding share capital of XTEPO Ltd. (a special purpose company that was established by Bio-Gal's shareholders who also transferred Bio-Gal's intellectual property rights on rHuEPO and will raise by way of a private placement approximately $1.5 million) (hereinafter “XTEPO”). We intend to develop rHuEPO for the prolongation of MM patients' survival and improvement of their quality of life. MM is a severe and incurable malignant hematological cancer of plasma cells. The course of the disease is progressive, and various complications occur, until death. In the United States alone, there are approximately 69,600 people living with MM, with about 20,200 new cases diagnosed annually, making MM the second most prevalent blood cancer.





On August 3, 2010, the Bio-Gal transaction was completed according to the outline signed by the parties to the agreement on December 31, 2009, after all the closing conditions had been met, including, among other things, the signing of an agreement with the Israeli Tax Authority regarding the tax exemption granted to the share swap transaction pursuant to Sections 104 and 103 to the Israeli Income Tax Ordinance (Revised), 1961.





In accordance with the terms of the amended asset purchase agreement, we issued to XTEPO's shareholders approximately 133 million ordinary shares representing 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital. In addition, the parties agreed to cancel a $10 million cash milestone payment to Bio-Gal upon the successful completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial, which was under the original asset purchase agreement. We are also obligated to pay 1% royalties on net sales of the product, as well as a fixed royalty payment in the total amount of $350,000 upon the successful completion of Phase 2. Such payment of $350,000 mentioned above shall be made to Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd. (“Yeda”) upon the earlier of (i) six months from the successful completion of Phase 2 or (ii) the completion of a successful fundraising by XTL or XTEPO of a minimum amount of $2 million at any time after the completion of the Phase 2 (See notes 1b and 9a to the consolidated financial statements: General, Intangible Asset).




5


Risk Factors





Before you invest in our ordinary shares or American Depositary Receipts representing American Depositary Shares, which we refer to in this report as ADRs, you should understand the high degree of risk involved. You should carefully consider the risks described below and other information in this report, including our financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this report, before you decide to purchase our ordinary shares or ADRs.  If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition and operating results could be adversely affected. As a result, the trading price of our ordinary shares or ADRs could decline and you could lose part or all of your investment.





Risks Related to Our Business




We have incurred substantial operating losses since our inception. We expect to continue to incur losses in the future and may never become profitable.




You should consider our prospects in light of the risks and difficulties frequently encountered by development stage companies. We have incurred operating losses since our inception and expect to continue to incur operating losses for the foreseeable future. As of December 31, 2010, we had an accumulated accounting deficit of approximately $142.1 million (for our current carry forward tax losses, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects - Governmental Economic, Fiscal, Monetary or Political Policies that Materially Affected or Could Materially Affect Our Operations”). We have not yet commercialized any of our drug candidates or technologies and cannot be sure we will ever be able to do so. Even if we commercialize one or more of our drug candidates or technologies, we may not become profitable. Our ability to achieve profitability depends on a number of factors, including our ability to complete our development efforts, consummate out-licensing agreements obtain regulatory approval for our drug candidates and technologies and successfully commercialize them.




If we are unable to successfully complete our clinical trial programs for our drug candidates, or if such clinical trials take longer to complete than we project, our ability to execute our current business strategy will be adversely affected.




Whether or not and how quickly we complete clinical trials depends in part upon the rate at which we are able to engage clinical trial sites and, thereafter, the rate of enrollment of patients, and the rate at which we are able to collect, clean, lock and analyze the clinical trial database. Patient enrollment is a function of many factors, including the size of the patient population, the proximity of patients to clinical sites, the eligibility criteria for the study, the existence of competitive clinical trials, and whether existing or new drugs are approved for the indication we are studying. We are aware that other companies are planning clinical trials that will seek to enroll patients with the same diseases and stages as we are studying. In addition, the multi-national nature of our studies adds another level of complexity and risk as the successful completion of those studies is subject to events affecting countries outside the United States. If we experience delays in identifying and contracting with sites and/or in patient enrollment in our clinical trial programs, we may incur additional costs and delays in our development programs, and may not be able to complete our clinical trials on a cost-effective or timely basis.




6




If third parties on which we rely for clinical trials do not perform as contractually required or as we expect, we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval for or commercialize our products.




We depend on independent clinical investigators, and other third-party service providers to conduct the clinical trials of our drug candidates and technologies, and we expect to continue to do so. We also may, from time to time, engage a clinical research organization for the execution of our clinical trials.  We rely heavily on these parties for successful execution of our clinical trials, but we do not control many aspects of their activities. Nonetheless, we are responsible for confirming that each of our clinical trials is conducted in accordance with the general investigational plan and protocol. Our reliance on these third parties that we do not control does not relieve us of our responsibility to comply with the regulations and standards of the US Food and Drug Administration, or the FDA, and/or other foreign regulatory agencies/authorities relating to good clinical practices. Third parties may not complete activities on schedule or may not conduct our clinical trials in accordance with regulatory requirements or the applicable trial’s plans and protocols. The failure of these third parties to carry out their obligations could delay or prevent the development, approval and commercialization of our products, or could result in enforcement action against us.




Our international clinical trials may be delayed or otherwise adversely impacted by social, political and economic factors affecting the particular foreign country.





We may conduct clinical trials in different geographical locations. Our ability to successfully initiate, enroll and complete a clinical trial in any of these countries, or in any future foreign country in which we may initiate a clinical trial, are subject to numerous risks unique to conducting business in foreign countries, including:





·
difficulty in establishing or managing relationships with clinical research organizations and physicians;





·
different standards for the conduct of clinical trials and/or health care reimbursement;





·
our inability to locate qualified local consultants, physicians, and partners;





·
the potential burden of complying with a variety of foreign laws, medical standards and regulatory requirements, including the regulation of pharmaceutical products and treatment; and





·
general geopolitical risks, such as political and economic instability, and changes in diplomatic and trade relations.





Any disruption to our international clinical trial program could significantly delay our product development efforts.





If the clinical data related to our drug candidates and technologies do not confirm positive early clinical data or preclinical data, our corporate strategy and financial results will be adversely impacted.




Our drug candidates and technologies are either in preclinical or clinical stages. Specifically, our lead product candidate (see “Item 10. Additional Information - Material Contracts”), Recombinant Human Erythropoietin (rHuEPO), is planned for a Phase 2 clinical program and the Diversity Oriented Synthesis, or DOS program, according to our knowledge based upon the most current reports we have received from Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., has not yet been tested in humans. In order for our candidates to proceed to later stage clinical testing, they must show positive clinical or preclinical data. While rHuEPO has shown promising preclinical data and has also shown promising clinical observation data for the extension and improvement of the quality of life of Multiple Myeloma terminal patients prior to it being acquired by us, preliminary results of pre-clinical, clinical observations or clinical tests do not necessarily predict the final results, and promising results in pre-clinical, clinical observations or early clinical testing might not be obtained in later clinical trials. Drug candidates in the later stages of clinical development may fail to show the desired safety and efficacy traits despite having progressed through initial clinical testing. Any negative results from future tests may prevent us from proceeding to later stage clinical testing, which would materially impact our corporate strategy and our financial results may be adversely impacted.


7




We have limited experience in conducting and managing clinical trials necessary to obtain regulatory approvals.  If our drug candidates and technologies do not receive the necessary regulatory approvals, we will be unable to commercialize our products.




We have not received, and may never receive, regulatory approval for commercial sale for any of our products. We currently do not have any drug candidates or technologies pending approval with the FDA or with regulatory authorities of other countries. We will need to conduct significant additional research and human testing before we can apply for product approval with the FDA or with regulatory authorities of other countries.  In order to obtain FDA approval to market a new drug product, we or our potential partners must demonstrate proof of safety and efficacy in humans. To meet these requirements, we or our potential partners will have to conduct extensive pre-clinical testing and “adequate and well-controlled” clinical trials.





Pre-clinical testing and clinical development are long, expensive and uncertain processes.  Clinical trials are very difficult to design and implement, in part because they are subject to rigorous regulatory requirements.  Satisfaction of regulatory requirements typically depends on the nature, complexity and novelty of the product and requires the expenditure of substantial resources. The commencement and rate of completion of clinical trials may be delayed by many factors, including:




·
obtaining regulatory approvals to commence a clinical trial;




·
reaching agreement on acceptable terms with prospective contract research organizations, or CROs, and trial sites, the terms of which can be subject to extensive negotiation and may vary significantly among different CROs and trial sites;




·
slower than expected rates of patient recruitment due to narrow screening requirements;




·
the inability of patients to meet protocol requirements imposed by the FDA or other regulatory authorities;




·
the need or desire to modify our manufacturing process;




·
delays, suspension, or termination of the clinical trials due to the institutional review board responsible for overseeing the study at a particular study site; and




·
government or regulatory delays or “clinical holds” requiring suspension or termination of the trials.




Following the completion of a clinical trial, regulators may not interpret data obtained from pre-clinical and clinical tests of our drug candidates and technologies the same way that we do, which could delay, limit or prevent our receipt of regulatory approval. In addition, the designs of our ongoing clinical trials were not, and the designs of future clinical trials may not be, reviewed or approved by the FDA prior to their commencement, and consequently the FDA could determine that the parameters of any existing or future studies are insufficient to demonstrate proof of safety and efficacy in humans. Failure to approve a completed study could also result from several other factors, including unforeseen safety issues, the determination of dosing, low rates of patient recruitment, the inability to monitor patients adequately during or after treatment, the inability or unwillingness of medical investigators to follow our clinical protocols, and the lack of effectiveness of the trials.




8




Specifically, in 2008, Amgen Inc. announced that US regulators added black box, or black label, warnings to its erythropoietin drugs, Epogen and Aranesp. Similar warnings were also added to Johnson and Johnson’s Procrit which is also licensed from Amgen. In the United States, a black box warning is a type of warning that appears on the package insert for prescription drugs that may cause serious adverse effects. A black box warning means that medical studies indicate that the drug carries a significant risk of serious or even life-threatening adverse effects. The new warnings warn that the erythropoietin drugs increased death and accelerated tumor growth in patients with several types of cancer, including breast and cervical. Prior labeling warned of similar risks in other types of cancers.




If the clinical trials fail to satisfy the criteria required, the FDA and/or other regulatory agencies/authorities may request additional information, including additional clinical data, before approval of marketing a product.  Negative or inconclusive results or medical events during a clinical trial could also cause us to delay or terminate our development efforts.  If we experience delays in the testing or approval process, or if we need to perform more or larger clinical trials than originally planned, our financial results and the commercial prospects for our drug candidates and technologies may be materially impaired.




Clinical trials have a high risk of failure. A number of companies in the pharmaceutical industry, including biotechnology companies, have suffered significant setbacks in clinical trials, even after achieving promising results in earlier trials. It may take us many years to complete the testing of our drug candidates and technologies, and failure can occur at any stage of this process.




Even if regulatory approval is obtained, our products and their manufacture will be subject to continual review, and there can be no assurance that such approval will not be subsequently withdrawn or restricted. Changes in applicable legislation or regulatory policies, or discovery of problems with the products or their manufacture, may result in the imposition of regulatory restrictions, including withdrawal of the product from the market, or result in increased costs to us.





Because all of our proprietary drug candidates and technologies are licensed to us by third parties, termination of these license agreements could prevent us from developing our drug candidates.





We do not own all of our drug candidates and technologies. We have acquired and/or licensed the rights, patent or otherwise, to our drug candidates from third parties. Specifically, we have acquired (through the acquisition of XTEPO, see “Item 10. Additional Information-Material Contracts”), the use patent on Recombinant Human Erythropoietin (rHuEPO) for the prolongation of multiple myeloma patients’ survival and improvement of their quality of life from Bio-Gal Ltd., who in turn licensed it from Mor Research Applications Ltd. and Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., both Israeli private corporations, and we have licensed DOS from VivoQuest, Inc. These license agreements require us to meet development or financing milestones and impose development and commercialization due diligence requirements on us. In addition, under these agreements, we must pay royalties on sales of products resulting from licensed drugs and technologies and pay the patent filing, prosecution and maintenance costs related to the licenses. While we have the right to defend patent rights related to our licensed drug candidates and technologies, we are not obligated to do so. In the event that we decide to defend our licensed patent rights, we will be obligated to cover all of the expenses associated with that effort. If we do not meet our obligations in a timely manner or if we otherwise breach the terms of our agreements, our licensors could terminate the agreements, and we would lose the rights to our drug candidates and technologies. From time to time, in the ordinary course of business, we may have disagreements with our licensors or collaborators regarding the terms of our agreements or ownership of proprietary rights, which could lead to delays in the research, development, collaboration and commercialization of our drug candidates or could require or result in litigation or arbitration, which could be time-consuming and expensive. For a further discussion on our license agreements, the patent rights related to those licenses, and the expiration dates of those patent rights, see “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Intellectual Property and Patents” and “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Licensing Agreements and Collaborations,” below.


9





If we do not establish or maintain drug development and marketing arrangements with third parties, we may be unable to commercialize our drug candidates and technologies into products.




We are an emerging company and do not possess all of the capabilities to fully commercialize our drug candidates and technologies on our own. From time to time, we may need to contract with third parties to:




·
assist us in developing, testing and obtaining regulatory approval for some of our compounds and technologies;




·
manufacture our drug candidates; and




·
market and distribute our products.




For example, in 2008, we announced that we had out-licensed the DOS program to Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., or Presidio. Under the terms of the license agreement, Presidio becomes responsible for the development and commercialization activities and costs related to the DOS program.




We can provide no assurance that we will be able to successfully enter into agreements with such third-parties on terms that are acceptable to us. If we are unable to successfully contract with third parties for these services when needed, or if existing arrangements for these services are terminated, whether or not through our actions, or if such third parties do not fully perform under these arrangements, we may have to delay, scale back or end one or more of our drug development programs or seek to develop or commercialize our drug candidates and technologies independently, which could result in delays. Further, such failure could result in the termination of license rights to one or more of our drug candidates and technologies. Moreover, if these development or marketing agreements take the form of a partnership or strategic alliance, such arrangements may provide our collaborators with significant discretion in determining the efforts and resources that they will apply to the development and commercialization of our products. Accordingly, to the extent that we rely on third parties to research, develop or commercialize our products, we are unable to control whether such products will be scientifically or commercially successful.




Even if we or our collaborative/strategic partners or potential collaborative/strategic partners receive approval to market our drug candidates, if our products fail to achieve market acceptance, we will never record meaningful revenues.





Even if our products are approved for sale, they may not be commercially successful in the marketplace. Market acceptance of our product candidates will depend on a number of factors, including:





·
perceptions by members of the health care community, including physicians, of the safety and efficacy of our products;





·
the rates of adoption of our products by medical practitioners and the target populations for our products;





·
the potential advantages that our products offer over existing treatment methods or other products that may be developed;





·
the cost-effectiveness of our products relative to competing products including potential generic competition;·
the level of off-label use of rHuEPO;·
the availability of government or third-party payor reimbursement for our products;





·
the side effects or unfavorable publicity concerning our products or similar products; and




·
the effectiveness of our and/or partners' sales, marketing and distribution efforts.


10


Specifically, Recombinant Human Erythropoietin, if successfully developed and commercially launched for the treatment of multiple myeloma, will compete with both currently marketed and new products marketed by other companies. Health care providers may not accept or utilize any of our product candidates. Physicians and other prescribers may not be inclined to prescribe our products unless our products bring clear and demonstrable advantages over other products currently marketed for the same indications. Because we expect sales of our products to generate substantially all of our revenues in the long-term, the failure of our products to find market acceptance would harm our business and could require us to seek additional financing or other sources of revenue.





If the third parties upon whom we rely to manufacture our products do not successfully manufacture our products, our business will be harmed.




We do not currently have the ability to manufacture the compounds that we need to conduct our clinical trials and, therefore, rely upon, and intend to continue to rely upon, certain manufacturers to produce and supply our drug candidates for use in clinical trials and for future sales. See “Item 4. Information on the Company – Business Overview - Supply and Manufacturing,” below.  In order to commercialize our products, such products will need to be manufactured in commercial quantities while adhering to all regulatory and other local requirements, all at an acceptable cost. We may not be able to enter into future third-party contract manufacturing agreements on acceptable terms, if at all.




We believe that we will either be able to purchase rHuEPO from existing pharmaceutical companies or to enter into collaborative agreements with contract manufacturers or other third-parties to obtain sufficient inventory to satisfy the clinical supply needs for our planned Phase 2 development program for the treatment of multiple myeloma.  If our contract manufacturers or other third parties fail to deliver our product candidates for clinical use on a timely basis, with sufficient quality, and at commercially reasonable prices, and we fail to find replacement manufacturers or sources, we may be required to delay or suspend clinical trials or otherwise discontinue development and production of our drug candidates.




Our contract manufacturers will be required to produce our clinical drug candidates under strict compliance with current good manufacturing practices, or cGMP, in order to meet acceptable regulatory standards for our clinical trials. If such standards change, the ability of contract manufacturers to produce our drug candidates on the schedule we require for our clinical trials may be affected. In addition, contract manufacturers may not perform their obligations under their agreements with us or may discontinue their business before the time required by us to successfully produce and market our drug candidates. Any difficulties or delays in our contractors’ manufacturing and supply of drug candidates could increase our costs, cause us to lose revenue or make us postpone or cancel clinical trials.




In addition, our contract manufacturers will be subject to ongoing periodic, unannounced inspections by the FDA and corresponding foreign or local governmental agencies to ensure strict compliance with, among other things, cGMP, in addition to other governmental regulations and corresponding foreign standards. We will not have control over, other than by contract, third-party manufacturers’ compliance with these regulations and standards. No assurance can be given that our third-party manufacturers will comply with these regulations or other regulatory requirements now or in the future.




In the event that we are unable to obtain or retain third-party manufacturers, we will not be able to commercialize our products as planned. If third-party manufacturers fail to deliver the required quantities of our products on a timely basis and at commercially reasonable prices, our ability to develop and deliver products on a timely and competitive basis may be adversely impacted and our business, financial condition or results of operations will be materially harmed.




11




If our competitors develop and market products that are less expensive, more effective or safer than our products, our commercial opportunities may be reduced or eliminated.




The pharmaceutical industry is highly competitive. Our commercial opportunities may be reduced or eliminated if our competitors develop and market products that are less expensive, more effective or safer than our products. Other companies have drug candidates in various stages of pre-clinical or clinical development to treat diseases for which we are also seeking to discover and develop drug candidates. For a discussion of these competitors and their drug candidates, see “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview – Competition,” below. Some of these potential competing drugs are already commercialized or are further advanced in development than our drug candidates and may be commercialized earlier. Even if we are successful in developing safe, effective drugs, our products may not compete successfully with products produced by our competitors, who may be able to market their drugs more effectively.




Our competitors include pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies, as well as universities and public and private research institutions. In addition, companies that are active in different but related fields present substantial competition for us. Many of our competitors have significantly greater capital resources, larger research and development staffs and facilities and greater experience in drug development, regulation, manufacturing and marketing than we do. These organizations also compete with us to recruit qualified personnel, attract partners for joint ventures or other collaborations, and license technologies that are competitive with ours. As a result, our competitors may be able to more easily develop products that could render our technologies or our drug candidates obsolete or noncompetitive.




If we lose our key personnel or are unable to attract and retain additional personnel, our business could be harmed.




As of May 30, 2011, we had three full-time employees/consultants (one of whom is an officer, which is engaged with the Company as a service provider) and three service providers (one of whom is an officer). To successfully develop our drug candidates and technologies, we must be able to attract and retain highly skilled personnel, including consultants and employees.  The retention of their services cannot be guaranteed.




Any acquisitions or in-licensing transactions we make may dilute your equity or require a significant amount of our available cash and may not be scientifically or commercially successful.




As part of our business strategy, we may effect acquisitions or in-licensing transactions to obtain additional businesses, products, technologies, capabilities and personnel. If we complete one or more such transactions in which the consideration includes our ordinary shares or other securities, your equity in us may be significantly diluted. If we complete one or more such transactions in which the consideration includes cash, we may be required to use a substantial portion of our available cash.




Specifically, as per the terms of our amended agreement with Bio-Gal Ltd. and XTEPO, we issued approximately 133 million ordinary shares par value NIS 0.10 representing 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital. Also, after the reporting date, on March 2011 we entered into a term sheet to acquire the assets of MinoGuard Ltd. (“Minoguard”) by an exclusive license to use MinoGuard's entire technology in return for royalties on sales and milestones (see “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Intellectual Property and Patents” and “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Licensing Agreements and Collaborations,” below). Acquisitions and in-licensing transactions also involve a number of operational risks, including:




·
difficulty and expense of assimilating the operations, technology or personnel of the business;




·
our inability to attract and retain management, key personnel and other employees necessary to conduct the business;




·
our inability to maintain relationships with key third parties, such as alliance partners, associated with the business;




·
exposure to legal claims for activities of the business prior to the acquisition;




·
the diversion of our management’s attention from our core business; and




·
the potential impairment of substantial goodwill and write-off of in-process research and development costs, adversely affecting our reported results of operations.


12




In addition, the basis for completing the acquisition or in-licensing could prove to be unsuccessful as the drugs or processes involved could fail to be scientifically or commercially viable. In addition, we may be required to pay third parties substantial transaction fees, in the form of cash or ordinary shares, in connection with such transactions.




If any of these risks occur, it could have an adverse effect on both the business we acquire or in-license and our existing operations.




We face product liability risks and may not be able to obtain adequate insurance.




The use of our drug candidates and technologies in clinical trials, and the sale of any approved products, exposes us to liability claims. Although we are not aware of any historical or anticipated product liability claims against us, if we cannot successfully defend ourselves against product liability claims, we may incur substantial liabilities or be required to cease clinical trials of our drug candidates and technologies or limit commercialization of any approved products.




We believe that we will be able to obtain sufficient product liability insurance coverage for our planned clinical trials. We intend to expand our insurance coverage to include the commercial sale of any approved products if marketing approval is obtained; however, insurance coverage is becoming increasingly expensive. We may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost. We may not be able to obtain additional insurance coverage that will be adequate to cover product liability risks that may arise. Regardless of merit or eventual outcome, product liability claims may result in:




·
decreased demand for a product;




·
injury to our reputation;




·
inability to continue to develop a drug candidate or technology;




·
withdrawal of clinical trial volunteers; and




·
loss of revenues.




Consequently, a product liability claim or product recall may result in material losses.




13


Risks Related to Our Financial Condition




Our current cash, cash equivalents and bank deposits may not be adequate to support our operations for the length of time that we have estimated. If we are unable to obtain additional funds on terms favorable to us, or at all, we may not be able to continue our operations.





We expect to use, rather than generate, funds from operations for the foreseeable future. The Company had losses of approximately $1.3 million and negative cash flows from operating activities of approximately $0.75 million in the year ended December 31, 2010, and we expect that the negative cash flows from operating activity will increase in 2011. Currently the Company has no revenues from operations and it funds its operations from its own capital and from external sources by way of issuing equity instruments. After the balance sheet date, on March 7, 2011, the Company raised by public issuance of 12,305,000 Ordinary Shares of NIS 0.1 par value each, 6,152,500 warrants (series 1) and 18,457,500 warrants (series 2) on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange a net amount of approximately $ 1.75 million (approximately NIS 6.3 million) (see also Note 24a to our consolidated financial statements). The Company’s management believes that the balances of cash and cash equivalents including the proceeds from the above raising will enable the Company to continue operating for a period of approximately 18 months from the date of the statement of financial position. Nevertheless, since the Company has no cash flows from operations and due to the nature of the Company’s activity as a research and development company, there is substantial doubt regarding the Company's ability to continue operating as a “going concern” beyond this period. These financial statements include no adjustments of the values of assets and liabilities and the classification thereof, if any, that will apply if the Company is unable to continue operating as a “going concern.”




Our business depends on a number of factors, some of which are beyond our control. These factors include:





·
the progress of our planned research activities;





·
the accuracy of our financial forecasts;





·
the number and scope of our planned development programs;





·
our ability to establish and maintain current and new licensing or acquisition arrangements;





·
our ability to achieve our milestones under our licensing arrangements;





·
the costs involved in enforcing patent claims and other intellectual property rights;





·
the costs and timing of regulatory approvals;





·
the costs and timing of the clinical trials according to regulatory requirements; and





·
patent expiration in 2019 and failure to obtain European orphan drug designation.





We will likely seek additional capital during the next 18 months through a rights offering and / or public or private equity offerings or debt financings. We have made no determination at this time as to the amount or method of any such financing. The global capital markets have been experiencing extreme volatility and disruption for the last three years.  In recent months, the volatility and disruption has increased mainly due to the financial instability and debt of some European countries, the uprisings against the regime in some Middle Eastern and North African countries, and the earthquake in Japan and its consequences. Given recent particularly adverse market conditions for small biotechnology companies, additional financing may not be available to us when we need it. We may also be forced to delay raising capital or bear an unattractive cost of capital.  If we are unable to obtain additional funds on terms favorable to us or at all, we may be required to cease or reduce our operating activities or sell or license to third parties some or all of our technology. If we raise additional funds by selling ordinary shares, ADRs, or other securities, the ownership interests of our shareholders will be diluted. If we need to raise additional funds through the sale or license of our drug candidates or technology, we may be unable to do so on terms favorable to us or at all.  If we are not able to raise capital in the next 18 months, there is a material risk regarding our ability to continue as a going concern.


14





We may not be able to utilize our accumulated net losses owned by the Company in Israel and/or offsetting the tax liability of the Subsidiaries.




We have had a “permanent establishment” in the United States, or US, which began in 2005 and ended in 2009.  As a result, any income attributable to such US permanent establishment for the years 2005-2009 was subject to US corporate income tax in the same manner as if we were a US corporation.  If this is the case, we may not be able to utilize any of the accumulated Israeli loss carry forwards mentioned in our notes to the 2010 financial statements since these losses were not attributable to the US permanent establishment.  However, we would be able to utilize losses attributable to the US permanent establishment to offset such US taxable income.  As of December 31, 2010, we estimate that these US net operating loss carry forwards are approximately $23 million.  These losses can be carried forward to offset future US taxable income, subject to certain significant limitations due to the shifts in ownership of XTL, resulting from the Bio-Gal transaction (see “Item 8. Financial Information-Material Contracts”) and subject to further limitations in case of a future offering or capital raise, resulting in more than a 50 percentage point change over a three year look back period, and expiring through 2029. US corporate tax rates are higher than those to which we are subject in the State of Israel, and if we are subject to US corporate tax, it would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Currently we do not have any activity in the US subsidiaries. However, if the subsidiaries commence operations in the future, they will be subject to the tax rules mentioned above.





We may not be able to utilize our accumulated net losses owned by our Subsidiaries in the US or offsetting any tax liabilities we may incur in the next years.




As of December 31, 2010, the net operating tax losses (“NOL”) of the US subsidiaries amounted to approximately $15 million. The utilization of these NOLs is subject to significant limitations to offset income in the future, if any, due to the shifts in ownership of XTL resulting from the Bio-Gal transaction (see “Item 8. Financial Information-Material Contracts”) and subject to further limitations pursuant to a US tax rule, in case of a future offering or capital raise, resulting in more than 50 percentage point change over a three year look back period, and expiring through 2029.




Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property




If we are unable to adequately protect our intellectual property, third parties may be able to use our technology, which could adversely affect our ability to compete in the market.




Our commercial success will depend in part on our ability and the ability of our licensors to obtain and maintain patent protection on our drug products and technologies and successfully defend these patents and technologies against third-party challenges. As part of our business strategy, our policy is to actively file patent applications in the US and internationally to cover methods of use, new chemical compounds, pharmaceutical compositions and dosing of the compounds and composition and improvements in each of these. See “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Intellectual Property and Patents,” below regarding our patent position with regard to our product candidates.  Because of the extensive time required for development, testing and regulatory review of a potential product, it is possible that before we commercialize any of our products, any related patent may expire or remain in existence for only a short period following commercialization, thus reducing any advantage of the patent.




15




The patent positions of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies can be highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions. No consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed in biotechnology patents has emerged to date. Accordingly, the patents we use may not be sufficiently broad to prevent others from practicing our technologies or from developing competing products. Furthermore, others may independently develop similar or alternative technologies or design around our patented technologies. The patents we use may be challenged or invalidated or may fail to provide us with any competitive advantage.




Generally, patent applications in the US are maintained in secrecy for a period of 18 months or more. Since publication of discoveries in the scientific or patent literature often lag behind actual discoveries, we are not certain that we were the first to make the inventions covered by each of our pending patent applications or that we were the first to file those patent applications. We cannot predict the breadth of claims allowed in biotechnology and pharmaceutical patents, or their enforceability. Third parties or competitors may challenge or circumvent our patents or patent applications, if issued. If our competitors prepare and file patent applications in the US that claim compounds or technology also claimed by us, we may choose to participate in interference proceedings declared by the United States Patent and Trademark Office to determine priority of invention, which could result in substantial cost, even if the eventual outcome is favorable to us. While we have the right to defend patent rights related to the licensed drug candidates and technologies, we are not obligated to do so. In the event that we decide to defend our licensed patent rights, we will be obligated to cover all of the expenses associated with that effort.




We also rely on trade secrets to protect technology where we believe patent protection is not appropriate or obtainable. Trade secrets are difficult to protect. While we require our employees, collaborators and consultants to enter into confidentiality agreements, this may not be sufficient to adequately protect our trade secrets or other proprietary information. In addition, we share ownership and publication rights to data relating to some of our drug candidates and technologies with our research collaborators and scientific advisors. If we cannot maintain the confidentiality of this information, our ability to receive patent protection or protect our proprietary information will be at risk.




We pursue patent protection in the US and in certain foreign countries relating to our development and commercialization of rHuEPO for the prolongation of multiple myeloma patients' survival and improvement of their quality of life. A main use patent (United States Patent 6,579,525 “Pharmaceutical Compositions Comprising Erythropoietin for Treatment of Cancer”) was submitted by Mor Research Applications Ltd., an Israeli corporation and Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., an Israeli corporation, in April 1998 and PCT was filed in April 1999.  The patent was granted in the United States, certain countries in Western Europe, Israel, Japan, Hong Kong and Canada and will expire in 2019. However, we were granted an Orphan-drug designation from the FDA in May 2011, see “Item 4. Information on the Company - Government and Industry Regulation”. Currently, under the license agreement which is held by XTEPO, we have the exclusive worldwide rights to the above patent for the use of rHuEPO in multiple myeloma. See “Item 4. Information on the Company – Business Overview - Intellectual Property and Patents.” However, we cannot guarantee the scope of protection of any issued patents, or that such patents will survive a validity or enforceability challenge.




16




Litigation or third-party claims of intellectual property infringement could require us to spend substantial time and money defending such claims and adversely affect our ability to develop and commercialize our products.




Third parties may assert that we are using their proprietary technology without authorization. In addition, third parties may have or obtain patents in the future and claim that our products infringe their patents. If we are required to defend against patent suits brought by third parties, or if we sue third parties to protect our patent rights, we may be required to pay substantial litigation costs, and our management’s attention may be diverted from operating our business. In addition, any legal action against our licensors or us that seeks damages or an injunction of our commercial activities relating to the affected products could subject us to monetary liability and require our licensors or us to obtain a license to continue to use the affected technologies. We cannot predict whether our licensors or we would prevail in any of these types of actions or that any required license would be made available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, any legal action against us that seeks damages or an injunction relating to the affected activities could subject us to monetary liability and/or require us to discontinue the affected technologies or obtain a license to continue use thereof.




In addition, there can be no assurance that our patents or patent applications or those licensed to us will not become involved in opposition or revocation proceedings instituted by third parties. If such proceedings were initiated against one or more of our patents, or those licensed to us, the defense of such rights could involve substantial costs and the outcome could not be predicted.




Competitors or potential competitors may have filed applications for, may have been granted patents for, or may obtain additional patents and proprietary rights that may relate to compounds or technologies competitive with ours. If patents are granted to other parties that contain claims having a scope that is interpreted to cover any of our products (including the manufacture thereof), there can be no assurance that we will be able to obtain licenses to such patents at reasonable cost, if at all, or be able to develop or obtain alternative technology.




Risks Related to Our Ordinary Shares and ADRs




Our ADRs are traded in small volumes, limiting your ability to sell your ADRs that represent ordinary shares at a desirable price, if at all.




The trading volume of our ADRs has historically been low.  Even if the trading volume of our ADRs increases, we can give no assurance that it will be maintained or will result in a desirable stock price.  As a result of this low trading volume, it may be difficult to identify buyers to whom you can sell your ADRs in desirable volume and you may be unable to sell your ADRs at an established market price, at a price that is favorable to you, or at all.  A low volume market also limits your ability to sell large blocks of our ADRs at a desirable or stable price at any one time.  You should be prepared to own our ordinary shares and ADRs indefinitely.


17




Our stock price can be volatile, which increases the risk of litigation and may result in a significant decline in the value of your investment.




The trading price of the ADRs representing our ordinary shares is likely to be highly volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in price in response to various factors, many of which are beyond our control. These factors include:




·
developments concerning our drug candidates;




·
announcements of technological innovations by us or our competitors;




·
introductions or announcements of new products by us or our competitors;




·
announcements by us of significant acquisitions, strategic partnerships, joint ventures or capital commitments;




·
changes in financial estimates by securities analysts;




·
actual or anticipated variations in interim operating results and near-term working capital;




·
expiration or termination of licenses, patents, research contracts or other collaboration agreements;




·
conditions or trends in the regulatory climate and the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries;




·
failure to obtain European orphan drug designation;




·
increase in costs and lengthy timing of the clinical trials according to regulatory requirements;




·
changes in the market valuations of similar companies; and




·
additions or departures of key personnel.




In addition, equity markets in general, and the market for biotechnology and life sciences companies in particular, have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of companies traded in those markets. These broad market and industry factors may materially affect the market price of our ordinary shares or ADRs, regardless of our development and operating performance. In the past, following periods of volatility in the market price of a company’s securities, securities class-action litigation has often been instituted against that company. Such litigation, if instituted against us, could cause us to incur substantial costs to defend such claims and divert management’s attention and resources even if we prevail in the litigation, all of which could seriously harm our business.




Future issuances or sales of our ordinary shares could depress the market for our ordinary shares and ADRs.




Future issuances of a substantial number of our ordinary shares, or the perception by the market that those issuances could occur, could cause the market price of our ordinary shares or ADRs to decline or could make it more difficult for us to raise funds through the sale of equity in the future.




Based on our current business plan and forecast, we believe that the balances of cash and cash equivalents including the proceeds from the offering (See“Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects-Liquidity and Capital Resources”) will enable the Company to continue operating for a period of approximately 18 months from the date of the statement of financial position. Nevertheless, since the Company has no cash flows from operations and due to the nature of the Company’s activity as a research and development company, there is substantial doubt regarding the Company’s ability to continue operating as a “going concern” beyond this period. These financial statements include no adjustments of the values of assets and liabilities and the classification thereof, if any, that will apply if the Company is unable to continue operating as a “going concern.”




Also, if we make one or more significant acquisitions in which the consideration includes ordinary shares or other securities, your portion of shareholders’ equity in us may be significantly diluted.  In addition, pursuant to a license agreement with VivoQuest, Inc., or VivoQuest, a privately held biotechnology company based in the US, we licensed (in all fields of use) certain intellectual property and technology related to VivoQuest’s HCV program.  Pursuant to the license agreement, we may elect to issue up to an additional $34 million in ordinary shares to VivoQuest in lieu of cash upon achievement of certain milestones. In the future, we may also enter into additional arrangements with other third-parties permitting us to issue ordinary shares in lieu of certain cash payments. Also, in connection with our agreement with DOV Pharmaceutical Inc., or DOV, XTL Development committed to pay a transaction advisory fee to certain third party intermediaries. The advisory fees can be paid in cash or by issuance of shares, at our sole discretion. Pursuant to the agreement with the certain third party intermediaries, and after we examined the settlement issue, in furtherance to our financial condition, it is possible that the advisory fees will be paid by way of issuing 1,659,945 shares (equity-settled).




18





Concentration of ownership of our ordinary shares among our principal stockholders may prevent new investors from influencing significant corporate decisions.




Following the closing of the Bio-Gal transaction, there are 3 shareholders (Mssrs. Alex Rabinovitch, David Bassa and Shalom Manova) who hold more than 5% of our outstanding ordinary shares (approximately 40.15% cumulative). As a result, these persons/companies, either acting alone or together, may have the ability to significantly influence the outcome of all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval, including the election and removal of directors and any merger, consolidation or sale of all or substantially all of our assets. In addition, such persons/companies, acting alone or together, may have the ability to effectively control our management and affairs. Accordingly, this concentration of ownership may depress the market price of our ADRs or ordinary shares.





Notwithstanding the aforesaid, in connection with Section 239 of the Israeli Companies Law that focuses on the number of votes required to appoint external directors, and in connection with Section 121 (c) of the Israeli Companies Law that focuses on the number of votes required to authorize the Chairman of the Board in a company to act also as the CEO of such company, the Company will deem these 3 shareholders as controlling shareholders in the Company, for as long as such individuals are interested parties in the Company. In addition, any contractual arrangement as detailed in Section 270 (4) of the Israeli Companies Law with any of these 3 shareholders and/or their relatives will be presented for approval in accordance with the provisions of Section 275 of the Israeli Companies Law. In all of the aforementioned situations, the Company will consider any of the aforesaid parties, who are not part of the transaction presented for approval as individual interested parties in such transaction so that their vote will not be included in the quorum comprising of a majority of the votes who are not interested parties in such transaction.




Our ordinary shares and ADRs trade on more than one market, and this may result in price variations and regulatory compliance issues.




ADRs representing our ordinary shares are quoted on the Pink Sheets Market and our ordinary shares are traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, or TASE. Trading in our securities on these markets is made in different currencies and at different times, including as a result of different time zones, different trading days and different public holidays in the US and Israel. Consequently, the effective trading prices of our shares on these two markets may differ. Any decrease in the trading price of our securities on one of these markets could cause a decrease in the trading price of our securities on the other market.




Our ADRs are quoted on the Pink Sheets market, which may result in them being classified as “Penny Stock.”




Our ADRs may become subject to the penny stock rules, which impose additional sales practice requirements on broker-dealers who sell our securities. If our ADRs become considered penny stock, the ability of broker-dealers to sell our ADRs and the ability of our shareholders to sell their ADRs in the secondary market would be limited and, as a result, the market liquidity for our ADRs would be adversely affected. We cannot assure you that trading in our securities will not be subject to these or other regulations in the future.


19





Holders of our ordinary shares or ADRs who are US citizens or residents may be required to pay additional income taxes.




There is a risk that we will be classified as a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for certain tax years. If we are classified as a PFIC, a US holder of our ordinary shares or ADRs representing our ordinary shares will be subject to special federal income tax rules that determine the amount of federal income tax imposed on income derived with respect to the PFIC shares. We will be a PFIC if either 75% or more of our gross income in a tax year is passive income or the average percentage of our assets (by value) that produce or are held for the production of passive income in a tax year is at least 50%. The risk that we will be classified as a PFIC arises because cash balances, even if held as working capital, are considered to be assets that produce passive income. Therefore, any determination of PFIC status will depend upon the sources of our income and the relative values of passive and non-passive assets, including goodwill. A determination as to a corporation’s status as a PFIC must be made annually. We believe that we were likely not a PFIC for the taxable year ended December 31, 2008. However, we believe that we were a PFIC for the taxable years ended December 31, 2006, 2007and 2009. Although such a determination is fundamentally factual in nature and generally cannot be made until the close of the applicable taxable year, based on our current operations, we believe that we may be classified as a PFIC in the 2010 taxable year and possibly in subsequent years. Although we may not be a PFIC in any one year, the PFIC taint remains with respect to those years in which we were or are a PFIC and the special PFIC taxation regime will continue to apply.




In view of the complexity of the issues regarding our treatment as a PFIC, US shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisors for guidance as to our status as a PFIC.  For further discussion of tax consequences of being a PFIC, see “US Federal Income Tax Considerations - Tax Consequences If We Are A Passive Foreign Investment Company,” below.




Provisions of Israeli corporate law may delay, prevent or affect a potential acquisition of all or a significant portion of our shares or assets and thereby depressing the price of our ordinary shares.




We are incorporated in the State of Israel. Israeli corporate law regulates acquisitions of shares through tender offers. It requires special approvals for transactions involving significant shareholders and regulates other matters that may be relevant to these types of transactions. These provisions of Israeli law may delay or prevent an acquisition, or make it less desirable to a potential acquirer and therefore depress the price of our shares. Further, Israeli tax considerations may make potential transactions undesirable to us or to some of our shareholders.




Israeli corporate law provides that an acquisition of shares in a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if, as a result of such acquisition, the purchaser would become a 25% or greater shareholder of the company. This rule does not apply if there is already another 25% or greater shareholder of the company. Similarly, Israeli corporate law provides that an acquisition of shares in a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if, as a result of the acquisition, the purchaser's shareholdings would entitle the purchaser to over 45% of the shares in the company, unless there is a shareholder with 45% or more of the shares in the company. These requirements do not apply if, in general, the acquisition (1) was made in a private placement that received the approval of the company’s shareholders, (2) was from a 25% or greater shareholder of the company which resulted in the purchaser becoming a 25% or greater shareholder of the company, or (3) was from a 45% or greater shareholder of the company which resulted in the acquirer becoming a 45% or greater shareholder of the company. These rules do not apply if the acquisition is made by way of a merger.




Finally, in general, Israeli tax law treats specified acquisitions less favorably than does US tax law. See “Item 10. Additional Information - Taxation - Israeli Tax Considerations,” below.




20




Our ADR holders are not shareholders and do not have shareholder rights.


The Bank of New York, as depositary, executes and delivers our ADRs on our behalf. Each ADR is a certificate evidencing a specific number of ADSs. Our ADR holders will not be treated as shareholders and do not have the rights of shareholders. The depositary will be the holder of the shares underlying our ADRs. Holders of our ADRs will have ADR holder rights. A deposit agreement among us, the depositary and our ADR holders, and the beneficial owners of ADRs, sets out ADR holder rights as well as the rights and obligations of the depositary. New York law governs the deposit agreement and the ADRs. Our shareholders have shareholder rights.  Israeli law and our Articles of Association, or Articles, govern shareholder rights. Our ADR holders do not have the same voting rights as our shareholders. Shareholders are entitled to our notices of general meetings and to attend and vote at our general meetings of shareholders. At a general meeting, every shareholder present (in person or by proxy, attorney or representative) and entitled to vote has one vote on a show of hands. Every shareholder present (in person or by proxy, attorney or representative) and entitled to vote has one vote per fully paid ordinary share on a poll. This is subject to any other rights or restrictions which may be attached to any shares. Our ADR holders may instruct the depositary to vote the ordinary shares underlying their ADRs, but only if we ask the depositary to ask for their instructions. If we do not ask the depositary to ask for the instructions, our ADR holders are not entitled to receive our notices of general meeting or instruct the depositary how to vote. Our ADR holders will not be entitled to attend and vote at a general meeting unless they withdraw the ordinary shares from the depository. However, our ADR holders may not know about the meeting enough in advance to withdraw the ordinary shares. If we ask for our ADR holders’ instructions, the depositary will notify our ADR holders of the upcoming vote and arrange to deliver our voting materials and form of notice to them. The depositary will try, as far as is practical, subject to the provisions of the deposit agreement, to vote the shares as our ADR holders instruct. The depositary will not vote or attempt to exercise the right to vote other than in accordance with the instructions of the ADR holders. We cannot assure our ADR holders that they will receive the voting materials in time to ensure that they can instruct the depositary to vote their shares. In addition, there may be other circumstances in which our ADR holders may not be able to exercise voting rights.




Our ADR holders do not have the same rights to receive dividends or other distributions as our shareholders. Subject to any special rights or restrictions attached to a share, the directors may determine that a dividend will be payable on a share and fix the amount, the time for payment and the method for payment (although we have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our ordinary stock and we do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future). Dividends and other distributions payable to our shareholders with respect to our ordinary shares generally will be payable directly to them. Any dividends or distributions payable with respect to ordinary shares will be paid to the depositary, which has agreed to pay to our ADR holders the cash dividends or other distributions it or the custodian receives on shares or other deposited securities, after deducting its fees and expenses. Our ADR holders will receive these distributions in proportion to the number of shares their ADRs represent. In addition, there may be certain circumstances in which the depositary may not pay to our ADR holders amounts distributed by us as a dividend or distribution. See the risk factor “There are circumstances where it may be unlawful or impractical to make distributions to the holders of our ADRs,” below.




There are circumstances where it may be unlawful or impractical to make distributions to the holders of our ADRs.




The deposit agreement with the depositary allows the depositary to distribute foreign currency only to those ADR holders to whom it is possible to do so. If a distribution is payable by us in New Israeli Shekels, the depositary will hold the foreign currency it cannot convert for the account of the ADR holders who have not been paid. It will not invest the foreign currency and it will not be liable for any interest. If the exchange rates fluctuate during a time when the depositary cannot convert the foreign currency, our ADR holders may lose some of the value of the distribution.




The depositary is not responsible if it decides that it is unlawful or impractical to make a distribution available to any ADR holders. This means that our ADR holders may not receive the distributions we make on our shares or any value for them if it is illegal or impractical for the depository to make such distributions available to them.




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Risks Relating to Operations in Israel




Conditions in the Middle East and in Israel may harm our operations.




Our headquarters and some of our planned clinical sites and suppliers are located in Israel. Political, economic and military conditions in Israel directly affect our operations. Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, a number of armed conflicts have taken place between Israel and its Arab neighbors, as well as incidents of civil unrest, military conflicts and terrorist actions. There has been a significant increase in violence since September 2000, which has continued with varying levels of severity through to the present. This state of hostility has caused security and economic problems for Israel. To date, Israel is facing political tension in its relationships with Turkey, Iran and other Arab neighbor countries. In addition, recently in some Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa there were violent uprisings against the regimes in these countries. Consequently, there is a concern for the stability in the region which may affect the political and security situation in Israel. We cannot insure that the political and security situation will not impact our business. Any hostilities involving Israel or the interruption or curtailment of trade between Israel and its present trading partners could adversely affect our operations and could make it more difficult for us to raise capital.




Our commercial insurance does not cover losses that may occur as a result of events associated with the security situation in the Middle East. Although the Israeli government currently covers the reinstatement value of direct damages that are caused by terrorist attacks or acts of war, we cannot assure you that this government coverage will be maintained. Any losses or damages incurred by us could have a material adverse effect on our business. Any armed conflicts or political instability in the region would likely negatively affect business conditions and could harm our results of operations.




Further, the State of Israel and Israeli companies have been subjected to an economic boycott. Several countries still restrict business with the State of Israel and with Israeli companies. These restrictive laws and policies may have an adverse impact on our operating results, financial condition or the expansion of our business.




Our results of operations may be adversely affected by inflation and foreign currency fluctuations.




We have generated all of our revenues and hold most of our cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and marketable securities in US dollars. Until 2008, a substantial amount of our operating expenses were in US dollars (approximately 96% in 2008). Commencing from 2009 (after the failure of the Bicifadine clinical trial) the Company’s head office moved back to Israel, and thus the portion of our expenses in New Israeli Shekels (“NIS”) and our cash held in NIS has increased, mainly due to payment to Israeli employees and suppliers. Additionally, our future activities could lead us to perform a clinical trial in Israel, which may lead us to reassess the US Dollar as our functional currency. As a result, we could be exposed to the risk that the US dollar will be devalued against the NIS or other currencies, and consequentially our financial results could be harmed if we are unable to guard against currency fluctuations in Israel or other countries in which services and supplies are obtained in the future. Accordingly, we may decide in the future to hold a significant portion of our cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and marketable securities in NIS, as well as to enter into currency hedging transactions to decrease the risk of financial exposure from fluctuations in the exchange rates of currencies. These measures, however, may not adequately protect us from the adverse effects of inflation in Israel.  In addition, we are exposed to the risk that the rate of inflation in Israel will exceed the rate of devaluation of the New Israeli Shekel in relation to the US dollar or that the timing of any devaluation may lag behind inflation in Israel.




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It may be difficult to enforce a US judgment against us, our officers or our directors or to assert US securities law claims in Israel.


Service of process upon us, since we are incorporated in Israel, and upon our directors and officers and our Israeli auditors, most of whom reside outside the US, may be difficult to obtain within the US. In addition, because substantially most of our assets and most of our directors and officers are located outside the US, any judgment obtained in the US against us or any of our directors and officers may not be collectible within the US. There is a doubt as to the enforceability of civil liabilities under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act pursuant to original actions instituted in Israel. Subject to particular time limitations and provided certain conditions are met, executory judgments of a US court for monetary damages in civil matters may be enforced by an Israeli court. For more information regarding the enforceability of civil liabilities against us, our directors and our executive officers, see “Item 10. Additional Information - Memorandum and Articles of Association - Enforceability of Civil Liabilities,” below.




ITEM 4. INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY




History and Development of XTL




We are a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the acquisition and development of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of unmet medical needs, currently for the treatment of multiple myeloma, or MM, and Hepatitis C. Our lead compound is Recombinant Human Erythropoietin, or rHuEPO, a known compound that we are planning to develop for the prolongation of MM patients’ survival and improvement of their quality of life. MM is a severe and incurable malignant hematological cancer of plasma cells. The course of the disease is progressive, and various complications occur, until death. This devastating disease affects the bone marrow, bones, kidneys, heart and other vital organs. It is characterized by pain, recurrent infections, anemia and pathological fractures. In the course of the disease, many patients become gradually disabled and bed-ridden. The median duration of survival with chemotherapy and other novel treatments is about fiveyears. Most of these treatments have severe side effects.




Recent Developments





We signed an asset purchase agreement to acquire the rights to develop rHuEPO for the treatment of MM from Bio-Gal Ltd., a private biotechnology company based in Gibraltar, in March 2009. In December 2009, we amended the asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal Ltd. so that XTL could acquire from the shareholders of XTEPO Ltd. (“XTEPO”), a special purpose company that was established by Bio-Gal Ltd.’s shareholders who shall receive from Bio-Gal all of Bio-Gal’s right on rHuEPO and raised approximately $1.5 million, all of their shares in XTEPO in exchange for the issuance to XTEPO’s shareholders of ordinary shares of XTL representing approximately 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital. In addition, the parties agreed to cancel a $10 million cash milestone payment to Bio-Gal upon the successful completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial, which was under the original asset purchase agreement. We are also obligated to pay 1% royalties on net sales of the product, as well as a fixed royalty payment in the total amount of $350,000 upon the success of Phase 2. Such payment of $350,000 mentioned above shall be made to Yeda upon the earlier of (i) six months from the Successful Completion of Phase 2 or (ii) the completion of a successful fundraising by XTL or XTEPO at any time after the completion of Phase 2 of an amount of minimum $2 million. On August 3, 2010, the Bio-Gal transaction was completed according to the outline signed by the parties to the agreement on December 31, 2009, after all the closing conditions had been met, including, among other things, the signing of an agreement with the Israeli Tax Authority regarding the tax exemption granted to the share swap transaction pursuant to Section 104 and 103 to the Israeli Tax Ordinance (Revised), 1961. (See notes 1b and 9a to the consolidated financial statements: General, Intangible Asset.)




Our second program is the Diversity Oriented Synthesis program, or DOS, which is focused on the development of novel pre-clinical Hepatitis C small molecule inhibitors, which we had out-licensed to Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., or Presidio, a private specialty pharmaceutical company based in San Francisco, California, in 2008. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Approximately 170 million people are believed to be infected with HCV worldwide, and an estimated 12,000 deaths from liver disease occur each year in the United States due to HCV infection.




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On September 1, 2010, the Company and Yeda Research and Development Co. Ltd. (“Yeda”) entered into an option agreement granting an exclusive right to examine a medical technology in the field of the immune system, comprising of two proteins through which target molecules are examined and may serve as a basis for the development of therapeutics for diseases relating to the immune system, such as acute hepatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, Chron’s disease and psoriasis. Under the agreement, the Company purchased this exclusive option right to examine the medical technology for a 15-month period in consideration for $120,000 payable by the Company in the following manner and at the earlier of:




(i)           In the event of raising funds by a prospectus to the public for more than $2 million, the Company is obligated to settle the payment in cash; or




(ii)          If 12 months after the date of closing of the agreement an amount of more than $2 million was not raised, the liability to Yeda can be satisfied, at the Company’s sole discretion and after obtaining Yeda’s approval to the timing, in cash or by issuance of options with equivalent value in lieu of that payment. Total amount of options allocated to Yeda will not exceed 2% of Company’s equity (on a fully diluted basis) and the exercise price of each option will be the par value of the Company’s shares.




If the Company intends to exercise its right to receive the license, it must notify Yeda and the parties will enter into a standard licensing agreement based on Yeda’s conditions discounted by 15% of normal market prices for granting such license by Yeda.




On March 24, 2011, the Company entered into a term sheet to acquire the assets of MinoGuard Ltd. (“MinoGuard”) by an exclusive license to use MinoGuard’s entire technology in return for royalties on sales and milestone payments throughout the clinical development process, without any other payments. MinoGuard was founded in 2007 in order to commercialize combination therapies for treating psychotic diseases, focusing on schizophrenia. The transaction is subject, among others, to completion of due diligence studies, examination of the regulatory track for the continued development of the drug and the approval of the Company’s Board of Directors.




Company Information and History




Our legal and commercial name is XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. We were established as a private company limited by shares under the laws of the State of Israel on March 9, 1993, under the name Xenograft Technologies Ltd.  We re-registered as a public company on June 7, 1993, in Israel, and changed our name to XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. on July 3, 1995. We commenced operations to use and commercialize technology developed at the Weizmann Institute, in Rehovot, Israel. Until 1999, our therapeutic focus was on the development of human monoclonal antibodies to treat viral, autoimmune and oncological diseases. Our first therapeutic programs focused on antibodies against the hepatitis B virus, interferon – γ and theHepatitis C virus.




During 2007, our legacy Hepatitis C clinical programs, XTL-6865 and XTL-2125, were terminated, and in July 2007, Cubist Pharmaceuticals terminated their license agreement with us for HepeX-B for the treatment of hepatitis B.  On December 31, 2007, Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd. (“Yeda”), the commercial arm of the Weizmann Institute, and XTL mutually terminated our research and license agreement dated April 7, 1993, as amended, and subject to certain closing conditions which were completed in March 2008, all rights in and to the licensed technology and patents reverted to Yeda.




In January 2007, XTL Development, Inc., our wholly owned subsidiary (“XTL Development”), had signed an agreement with DOV Pharmaceutical, Inc. (“DOV”), to in-license the worldwide rights for Bicifadine, a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) (“the Bicifadine transaction”). XTL Development was developing Bicifadine for the treatment of diabetic neuropathic pain - a chronic condition resulting from damage to peripheral nerves. In November 2008, we announced that the Phase 2b clinical trial failed to meet its primary and secondary endpoints, and as a result we ceased development of Bicifadine for diabetic neuropathic pain, and all rights under the agreement reverted to DOV. Since the failure of the Bicifadine phase 2b clinical trial, XTL Development has ceased the prosecution and maintenance of those patents relating to Bicifadine, in coordination with DOV. In March 2010, the agreement was formally terminated.




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In 2008, we signed an agreement to out-license the DOS program to Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., or Presidio, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, in-licensing, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for viral infections, including HIV and HCV. Under the terms of the license agreement, as revised, Presidio becomes responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to our DOS program. In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, we received a $5.94 million, non-refundable, upfront payment in cash from Presidio and will receive up to an additional $59 million upon reaching certain development and commercialization milestones. In addition, we will receive royalties on direct product sales by Presidio, and a percentage of Presidio’s income if the DOS program is sublicensed by Presidio to a third party.




Our ADRs are quoted on the Pink Sheets, an inter-dealer electronic quotation and trading system in the over-the-counter (OTC) securities market, under the symbol “XTLBY.PK.”  Our ordinary shares are traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the symbol “XTL.”  We operate under the laws of the State of Israel, under the Israeli Companies Act, and in the US, the Securities Act and the Exchange Act.




Our principal offices are located at Herzliya Business Park, 85 Medinat Hayehudim Street, Building G, PO Box 4033, Herzliya 46140, Israel, and our telephone number is +972-9-955-7080. XTL Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., our wholly-owned US subsidiary and agent for service of process in the US, can be reached at XTL Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. c/o Corporation Trust Company, Corporation Trust Center, 1209 N. Orange Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801, or by telephone at (800) 677-3394. Our primary internet address is www.xtlbio.com. None of the information on our website is incorporated by reference into this annual report.




On November 20, 2007, we completed a private placement of 14,497,004 NIS 0.1 par value ordinary shares (equivalent to 7,248,502 ADRs) at $0.675 per ordinary share (equivalent to $1.35 per ADR). Total proceeds to us from this private placement were approximately $8.8 million, net of offering expenses of approximately $1.0 million. In addition, on March 22, 2006, we completed a private placement of 9,333,334 NIS 0.1 par value ordinary shares (equivalent to 4,666,667 ADRs) at $3.00 per share ($6.00 per ADR), together with warrants for the purchase of an aggregate of 4,666,667 ordinary shares (equivalent to 2,333,333.5 ADRs) at an exercise price of $4.375 ($8.75 per ADR). Total proceeds to us from this private placement were approximately $24.4 million, net of offering expenses of approximately $3.6 million. The private placement closed on May 25, 2006. Since inception and until the date of the statement of financial position , we have raised net proceeds of approximately $137.4 million to fund our activities, including the net proceeds from our 2007 and 2006 private placements.




After the reporting date, in March 2011, we raised by public issuance of 12,305,000 Ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value each, 6,152,500 warrants (series 1) and 18,457,500 warrants (series 2) on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange an immediate net amount of approximately $ 1.75 million (approximately NIS 6.3 million) (See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects-Liquidity and Capital Resources”).




For the years ended December 31, 2010, 2009, and 2008 our capital expenditures were $16,000, $0 and $2,000, respectively. During 2010 we did not dispose any of our assets. During 2009, proceeds from disposition of certain unused assets were immaterial (less than $1,000). During 2008, we completed the disposition of certain assets (primarily lab equipment) associated with the DOS program, with $327,000 in proceeds from disposals of those assets in 2008.




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Business Overview




Introduction




We are a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the acquisition and development of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of unmet medical needs, currently for the treatment of MM and also Hepatitis C.




Our lead compound is rHuEPO, which we intend to develop for the survival extension of MM terminal patients’ lives.





Erythropoietin (EPO) is aglycoprotein hormone produced mainly by the kidney. It is the major growth regulator of the erythroid lineage. EPO stimulates erythropoiesis, the production of red blood cells, by binding to its receptor (EPO-R) on the surface of erythroid progenitor cells, promoting their proliferation and differentiation and maintaining their viability.  Over the last decade, several reports have indicated that the action of EPO is not restricted to the erythroid compartment, but may have additional biological, and consequently potential therapeutic properties, broadly beyond erythropoiesis. Erythropoietin is available as a therapeutic agent produced by recombinant DNA technology in mammalian cell culture. rHuEPO is used in clinical practice for the treatment of various anemias including anemia of kidney disease and cancer-related anemia.





Currently incurable, MM is a severe plasma cell malignancy characterized by the accumulation and proliferation of clonal plasma cells in the marrow, leading to the gradual replacement of normal hematopoiesis. The course of the disease is progressive, and various complications occur, until death. This devastating disease affects the bone marrow, bones, kidneys, heart and other vital organs. It is characterized by pain, recurrent infections, anemia and pathological fractures. In the course of the disease, many patients become gradually disabled and bed-ridden.




The median overall survival duration today with chemotherapy and other novel treatments is about five years. These treatments have severe side effects, including the suppression of the immune system, susceptibility to infections, nausea, vomiting and bleeding disorders.




Our second program is the Diversity Oriented Synthesis, or DOS, program, which is focused on the development of novel pre-clinical Hepatitis C small molecule inhibitors. Compounds developed to date inhibit HCV replication in a pre-clinical cell-based assay with potencies comparable to clinical stage drugs. On March 20, 2008, we announced that we had out-licensed the DOS program to Presidio.




On September 1, 2010, the Company and Yeda entered into an option agreement granting an exclusive right to examine a medical technology in the field of the immune system, comprising of two proteins through which target molecules are examined and may serve as a basis for the development of therapeutics for diseases relating to the immune system, such as acute hepatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, Chron’s disease, and psoriasis. Under the agreement, the Company purchased this exclusive option right to examine the medical technology for a 15-month period in consideration for $120,000.  Yeda will reserve the right to cancel this Agreement after 12 months from the day of the signing of said Agreement if the Company failed to complete raising funds that exceed US$ 1.5 million from any source. Since we raised approximately $1.75 million (net) in a public offering on TASE in March 2011, this condition expired.




To date, we have not received approval for the sale of any of our drug candidates in any market and, therefore, have not generated any commercial revenues from the sales of our drug candidates. Moreover, preliminary results of our pre-clinical or clinical tests do not necessarily predict the final results, and acceptable results in early preclinical or clinical testing might not be obtained in later clinical trials. Drug candidates in the later stages of clinical development may fail to show the desired safety and efficacy traits despite having progressed through initial clinical testing.


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Our Strategy





Under our current strategy, we plan to:




·
initiate a prospective, multi-center, double blind, placebo controlled Phase 2 clinical study intended to assess the safety and efficacy of rHuEPO when given to patients with advanced MM;




·
advance the development of rHuEPO towards approval as treatment of MM either alone or with a corporate partner;




·
seek to in-license or acquire additional candidates, and




·
development of collaborations with large pharmaceutical companies to market rHuEPO.




Products Under Development (see “Item 8. Financial Information - Material Contracts,” regarding the Bio-Gal transaction).




rHuEPO for the treatment of MM




Market Opportunity





We intend to develop the use of rHuEPO for the prolongation of MM patients’ survival. In the United States alone, there are approximately 69,600 people living with MM, with about 20,200 new cases diagnosed annually (Facts 2010-2011. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society). MM is the second most prevalent blood cancer representing approximately 1% of all cancers in white US residents and 2% of all cancers in African Americans. The average age at diagnosis is 65-70 and is also more common in men than women, and in African Americans than Caucasians.





Erythropoietin, a glycoprotein hormone produced mainly by the kidney, is the major growth regulator of the erythroid lineage. EPO stimulates erythropoiesis by binding to its receptor (EPO-R) on the surface of erythroid progenitor cells, promoting their proliferation and differentiation and maintaining their viability. The cloning of the EPO gene led to the introduction of rHuEPO into clinical practice for the treatment of various anemias including anemia of kidney disease and cancer-related anemia.





Over the last decade, several reports (Mittelman PNAS 2001, Mittelman European Journal of Hematology 2004; Katz Acta Haematol 2005; Prutchi-Sagiv BJH 2006; Prutchi-Sagiv Exp Hematol 2008; Brines PNAS 2001; Baz Acta Haematol 2007; Prutchi-Sagiv Medical Hypothesis and Research 2005, Katz Eur. J. Immunol 2007) have indicated that the action of EPO is not restricted to the erythroid compartment, but may have additional biological, and consequently potential therapeutic properties, broadly beyond erythropoiesis.





A clinical observation made by Professor Moshe Mittelman and colleagues (Mittelman M, Zeidman A, Kanter P, Katz O, Oster H, Rund D, Neumann D. Erythropoietin has an anti-myeloma effect - a hypothesis based on a clinical observation supported by animal studies. Eur J Haematol. 2004 Mar;72(3):155-65) confirmed the high success rate of rHuEPO in treating the anemia in patients with MM. Six patients continued treatment with rHuEPO beyond the initial designed 12 week period with very poor prognostic features of MM, whose expected survival was less than 6 months, and surprisingly, they lived for 45–133 months cumulatively with the MM diagnosis and 38–94 months with rHuEPO (with a good quality of life).





This clinical observation was further supported by pre-clinical animal studies. These animal studies not only confirmed the anti-myeloma effect of rHuEPO but also detected a new unrecognized hitherto immune-mediated effect to rHuEPO, probably mediated via T cells (Mittelman M., Neumann D., Peled A., Kanter P. and Haran- Ghera N. 2001) Erythropoietin induces tumor regression and antitumor immune responses in murine myeloma models.  (PNAS, vol. 98: 9. 5181 - 5186;  Katz O, Barzilay E, Skaat A, Herman A, Mittelman M, Neumann D.Erythropoietin induced tumour mass reduction in murine lymphoproliferative models. Acta Haematol. 2005; 114 (3):177-9). Recently, it was also shown that treatment of stage II-III MM patients with rHuEPO is associated with a significant improvement of various immunological parameters and functions (Prutchi-Sagiv British Journal of Hematology 2006; Prutchi-Sagiv Experimental Hematology 2008; Lifshitz Molecular Immunology 2009).


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Furthermore, several studies have been published by other investigators addressing survival and/or prognosis in cancer patients treated with rHuEPO. For example:





Baz R et al: A team from the Cleveland Clinic Myeloma Program analyzed their experience with rHuEPO in MM patients. This retrospective analysis provides data on 292 MM patients enrolled on different protocols between 1997 and 2003. The authors concluded that “rHuEPO was associated with improved overall survival in this population of anemic MM patients with SWOG stages II, III and IV.” They summarized by saying that “a prospective randomized trial is warranted to corroborate this finding” (Baz R et al: Recombinant human erythropoietin is associated with increased overall survival in patients with multiple myeloma (Acta Haematol 2007; 117: 162-7)).




Development Status




We plan on performing a prospective, multi-center, double blind, placebo controlled phase 2 study intended to demonstrate its effects on survival, biological markers related to the disease, immune improvements and quality of life. We intend to initiate the clinical trial/receive approvals to commence such clinical trial in the first half of 2011.  The trial will enroll approximately 50 MM patients over a period of 2 and a half years. We have begun preliminary discussions with potential clinical sites and third party vendors for the planned study. The study is expected to cost $1-1.5 million.





The drug development process is a multi-step process, including the following steps: pre-clinical, Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3 clinical trials.





Given that we intend to develop a new indication for rHuEPO, which is already approved for another use, and the fact that the pre-clinical and phase 1 phases are intended to assess drug toxicity and safety, we may be exempted from carrying out these steps and the drug development process may begin with Phase 2 clinical trial.





This is an estimation only and based on information our group has at the time of writing this report. Actual results may differ from the results implied in this report.  There is no certainty that we may receive an exemption from carrying out one or more phases, nor is there certainty about the results of these experiments.




DOS




Market Opportunity





We had been developing the DOS program for the treatment of Hepatitis C, prior to us out-licensing it to Presidio in March 2008. Chronic Hepatitis C is a serious life-threatening disease which affects around 170 to 200 million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. According to the BioSeeker Group, 20% to 30% of chronic hepatitis patients will eventually develop progressive liver disease that may lead to decomposition of the liver or hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer). According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearing House, of the U.S. population, 1.6 percent, or an estimated 4.1 million Americans, have antibody to HCV (anti-HCV), indicating ongoing or previous infection with the virus. Hepatitis C causes each year 10,000 to 12,000 people die from HCV in the US alone.




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According to the PharmaDD, the worldwide market for the treatment of chronic HCV in 2005 was estimated at $3 billion and consists entirely of Interferon-based treatments. Interferon alpha was first approved for use against chronic Hepatitis C in 1991. At present, the optimal regimen appears to be a 24 or 48 week course of the combination of Pegylated-Interferon and Ribavirin. In studies done at the St. Louis University School of Medicine, a 24 week course of this combination therapy yields a sustained response rate of approximately 40% to 45% in patients with genotype 1 (the most prevalent genotype in the western world according to the CDC) and a better sustained response with a 48 week course.




Given the limited efficacy of the present standard of care and significant side effects associated with it, there is a clear need for novel treatments for Hepatitis C.




Development Status




In March 2008, and as revised in August 2008, we signed an agreement to out-license the DOS program to Presidio, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, in-licensing, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for viral infections, including HIV and HCV. Under the terms of the license agreement, as revised, Presidio becomes responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to our DOS program. In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, we received a $5.94 million, non-refundable, upfront payment in cash from Presidio and will receive up to an additional $59 million upon reaching certain development and commercialization milestones. In addition, we will receive a royalty on direct product sales by Presidio, and a percentage of Presidio’s income if the DOS program is sublicensed by Presidio to a third party. DOS is a pre-clinical program focused on the development of novel Hepatitis C small molecule inhibitors. DOS applies proprietary, fully synthetic chemistry methodologies to rapidly synthesize and diversify complex chemical compounds such as natural products. Compounds in each family inhibited HCV replication in a pre-clinical cell-based assay with potencies against the most prevalent HCV genotypes comparable or superior to clinical stage drugs. They also retained their potency against isolates that are resistant to clinical stage drugs. Presidio is currently in the process of identifying drug leads to be tested in formal toxicological studies in anticipation of the commencement of clinical trials in humans thereafter. According to our knowledge, as of today, the DOS program compounds are still in preclinical development. See “Item 10. Additional Information -Material Contracts.”




We gained access to the DOS program through a license and asset purchase agreement with VivoQuest that was completed in September 2005. Under this agreement, we licensed lead HCV molecules, a proprietary compound library and medicinal chemistry technologies. The DOS small molecule chemistry technology developed at VivoQuest was used to create these molecules.  See “Item 10. Additional Information -Material Contracts.”




Intellectual Property and Patent




General




Patents and other proprietary rights are very important to the development of our business. We will be able to protect our proprietary technologies from unauthorized use by third parties only to the extent that our proprietary rights are covered by valid and enforceable patents or are effectively maintained as trade secrets. It is our intention to seek and maintain patent and trade secret protection for our drug candidates and our proprietary technologies. As part of our business strategy, our policy is to actively file patent applications in the US and internationally to cover methods of use, new chemical compounds, pharmaceutical compositions and dosing of the compounds and compositions and improvements in each of these. We also rely on trade secret information, technical know-how, innovation and agreements with third parties to continuously expand and protect our competitive position. Because of the extensive time required for development, testing and regulatory review of a potential product, it is possible that before we commercialize any of our products, any related patent may expire or remain in existence for only a short period following commercialization, thus reducing any commercial advantage or financial value attributable to the patent.




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Generally, patent applications in the US are maintained in secrecy for a period of 18 months or more. Since publication of discoveries in the scientific or patent literature often lag behind actual discoveries, we are not certain that we were the first to make the inventions covered by each of our pending patent applications or that we were the first to file those patent applications. The patent positions of biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies are highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions. Therefore, we cannot predict the breadth of claims allowed in biotechnology and pharmaceutical patents, or their enforceability. To date, there has been no consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed in biotechnology patents. Third parties or competitors may challenge or circumvent our patents or patent applications, if issued. Granted patents can be challenged and ruled invalid at any time, therefore the grant of a patent is not of itself sufficient to demonstrate our entitlement to a proprietary right. The disallowance of a claim or invalidation of a patent in any one territory can have adverse commercial consequences in other territories.




If our competitors prepare and file patent applications in the US that claim technology also claimed by us, we may choose to participate in interference proceedings declared by the US Patent and Trademark Office to determine priority of invention, which could result in substantial cost, even if the eventual outcome is favorable to us. While we have the right to defend patent rights related to our licensed drug candidates and technologies, we are not obligated to do so. In the event that we decide to defend our licensed patent rights, we will be obligated to cover all of the expenses associated with that effort.




If a patent is issued to a third party containing one or more preclusive or conflicting claims, and those claims are ultimately determined to be valid and enforceable, we may be required to obtain a license under such patent or to develop or obtain alternative technology.  In the event of a litigation involving a third party claim, an adverse outcome in the litigation could subject us to significant liabilities to such third party, require us to seek a license for the disputed rights from such third party, and/or require us to cease use of the technology.  Further, our breach of an existing license or failure to obtain a license to technology required to commercialize our products may seriously harm our business. We also may need to commence litigation to enforce any patents issued to us or to determine the scope, validity and/or enforceability of third-party proprietary rights. Litigation would involve substantial costs.




rHuEPO for the treatment of MM





A main use patent, United States Patent 6,579,525 “Pharmaceutical Compositions Comprising Erythropoietin for Treatment of Cancer,” was submitted by Mor Research Applications Ltd. and Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., Israeli corporations, in April 1998 and a PCT was filed in April 1999.  The patent was granted in the United States, Europe (Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland), Israel, Japan, Hong Kong and Canada. The issued patent will expire in 2019. Pursuant to our agreement with Bio-Gal Ltd, we have exclusive worldwide rights to the above patent for the use of rHuEPO in MM.





The main claims of this issued patent are as follows: A method for the treatment of a multiple myeloma patient, comprising the administration of erythropoietin or recombinant human erythropoietin, as the case may be, for the inhibition of tumor growth, triggering of tumor regression or inhibition of MM cell metastasis in the said patient.





The original EPO patent for the treatment of anemia is currently owned by Amgen and Johnson & Johnson.





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DOS


The lead molecules that are included in the VivoQuest license are covered by four issued US patents and three pending US patent applications. As of April 8, 2011, the Company has determined to maintain these patents in the United States only. The patent applications describe both the structure of the compounds and their use for treating HCV infection. The two issued VivoQuest patents will expire in 2023. Additional patent applications, if issued, will expire in 2023, 2024 and 2025. We have also filed additional patent applications that cover the lead compounds discovered since the licensing of the DOS from VivoQuest. These additional patent applications, if issued, will expire in 2026 and 2027.  Based on the provisions of the Patent Term Extension Act, we currently believe that we would qualify for certain patent term extensions.  Pursuant to the VivoQuest license, we will make royalty payments ranging from 2% to 8%, based on net sales of the compounds.




We believe that Presidio will have sufficient time to commercially utilize the inventions from our small molecule development program directed to the treatment and prevention of Hepatitis C infection.




Other Intellectual Property Rights





We depend upon trademarks, trade secrets, know-how and continuing technological advances to develop and maintain our competitive position. To maintain the confidentiality of trade secrets and proprietary information, we require our employees, scientific advisors, consultants and collaborators, upon commencement of a relationship with us, to execute confidentiality agreements and, in the case of parties other than our research and development collaborators, to agree to assign their inventions to us. These agreements are designed to protect our proprietary information and to grant us ownership of technologies that are developed in connection with their relationship with us. These agreements may not, however, provide protection for our trade secrets in the event of unauthorized disclosure of such information.




Licensing Agreements and Collaborations




Our current key strategic alliances are discussed below. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects - Obligations and Commitments” which describes contingent milestone payments we have undertaken to make to certain licensors over the life of the licenses described below.




Bio-Gal Ltd./XTEPO





We signed an asset purchase agreement to acquire the rights to develop rHuEPO for the treatment of MM from Bio-Gal, a private biotechnology company based in Gibraltar, in March 2009. In December, 2009, we amended the asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal, so that XTL could acquire from the shareholders of XTEPO all of their shares in XTEPO in exchange for the issuance to XTEPO’s shareholders of ordinary shares of XTL representing approximately 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital. In addition, the parties agreed to cancel a $10 million cash milestone payment to Bio-Gal upon the successful completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial, which was under the original asset purchase agreement. We are also obligated to pay 1% royalties on net sales of the product, as well as a fixed royalty payment in the total amount of $350,000 upon the successful completion of Phase 2. Such payment of $350,000 mentioned above shall be made to Yeda upon the earlier of (i) six months from the successful completion of Phase 2 or (ii) the completion of a successful fundraising by XTL or XTEPO at any time after the completion of the Phase 2 of an amount of minimum $2 million. On August 3, 2010, the Bio-Gal transaction was completed according to the outline signed by the parties to the agreement on December 31, 2009, after all the closing conditions had been met, including, among other things, the signing of an agreement with the Israeli Tax Authority regarding the tax exemption granted to the share swap transaction pursuant to Section 104 and 103 to the Israeli Tax Ordinance (Revised), 1961. (See notes 1b and 9a to the consolidated financial statements: General, Intangible Asset).




31





VivoQuest License


In August 2005, we entered into a license agreement with VivoQuest covering a proprietary compound library, including certain HCV compounds. Under the terms of the license agreement, we have exclusive worldwide rights to VivoQuest’s intellectual property and technology in all fields of use. To date we have made approximately $0.9 million in license payments to VivoQuest under the license agreement.  The license agreement also provides for additional milestone payments triggered by certain regulatory and sales targets. These additional milestone payments total $34 million, $25 million of which will be due upon or following regulatory approval or actual product sales, and are payable in cash or ordinary shares at our election. In addition, the license agreement requires that we make royalty payments to VivoQuest on product sales.




Presidio License




In March 2008, and as revised August 2008, we signed an agreement to out-license the DOS program to Presidio, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, in-licensing, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for viral infections, including HIV and HCV. Under the terms of the license agreement, as revised, Presidio becomes responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to our DOS program. In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, we received a $5.94 million, non-refundable, upfront payment in cash from Presidio and will receive up to an additional $59 million upon reaching certain development and commercialization milestones. In addition, we will receive a royalty on direct product sales by Presidio, and a percentage of Presidio’s income if the DOS program is sublicensed by Presidio to a third party.




Bicifadine License




In January 2007, XTL Development had signed an agreement with DOV to in-license the worldwide rights for Bicifadine for the treatment of diabetic neuropathic pain. In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, XTL Development paid an initial up-front license fee of $7.5 million in cash in 2007. In addition, XTL Development would have made milestone payments of up to $126.5 million over the life of the license. These milestone payments may have been made in either cash and/or our ordinary shares, at our sole discretion, with the exception of $5 million in cash, which would have been due upon or after regulatory approval.XTL Development was also obligated to pay royalties to DOV on net sales of Bicifadine. In November 2008, we announced that the Phase 2b clinical trial failed to meet its primary and secondary endpoints, and as a result we ceased development of Bicifadine for diabetic neuropathic pain in 2008 and all rights under the agreement reverted to DOV. Since the failure of the Bicifadine phase 2b clinical trial, XTL Development ceased the prosecution and maintenance of those patents relating to Bicifadine, in coordination with DOV. In March 2010, the agreement was formally terminated.




MinoGuard License – Term Sheet




On March 24, 2011, the Company entered into a term sheet to acquire the assets of MinoGuard Ltd. (“MinoGuard”) by an exclusive license to use MinoGuard’s entire technology in return for royalties on sales and milestone payments throughout the clinical development process, without any other payments. MinoGuard was founded in 2007 in order to commercialize combination therapies for treating psychotic diseases, focusing on schizophrenia. The transaction is subject, among others, to completion of due diligence studies, examination of the regulatory track for the continued development of the drug and the approval of the Company’s Board.




Competition





Competition in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries is intense. Our competitors include pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies, as well as universities and public and private research institutions.  In addition, companies that are active in different but related fields represent substantial competition for us.  Many of our competitors have significantly greater capital resources, larger research and development staffs and facilities and greater experience in drug development, regulation, manufacturing and marketing than we do. These organizations also compete with us to recruit qualified personnel, attract partners for joint ventures or other collaborations, and license technologies that are competitive with ours. To compete successfully in this industry we must identify novel and unique drugs or methods of treatment and then complete the development of those drugs as treatments in advance of our competitors.




32





The drugs that we are attempting to develop will have to compete with existing therapies. In addition, a large number of companies are pursuing the development of pharmaceuticals that target the same diseases and conditions that we are targeting. Other companies have products or drug candidates in various stages of pre-clinical or clinical development to treat diseases for which we are also seeking to discover and develop drug candidates. Some of these potential competing drugs are further advanced in development than our drug candidates and may be commercialized earlier.




The anti-cancer drug market is very large. The National Institutes of Health estimated that the total cost of cancer care in the United States in 2005 was $209.9 billion1. In 2008, sales of anti-cancer drugs reached a total of approximately $48 Billion2 and are expected to grow to 80 billion dollars in 20103.




In 2003, a new anti-cancer drug for multiple myeloma called Velcade was approved for use and marketing. In 2008, sales of drugs used to treat multiple myeloma in the US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, England and Japan totaled $2.1 billion (and is expected to rise to $5.3 billion in 2018)4. According to Bloomberg Analyst Reports5 the sale of Velcade among all drugs used to treat multiple myeloma, comprising approximately 40% of the multiple myeloma drug market while in 2009 Johnson & Johnson (which markets Velcade outside the US) and Japanese pharmaceutical Takeda (which markets Velcade in the US) generated $1.2 billion in sales. In addition, based on the financial statements of the pharmaceutical company Celgene6 (which markets Revlimid), Revlimid sales in 2010 totaled $2.47 billion.




Competing Products for Treatment of MM


Although there are commercially available drugs for the treatment of MM, we plan to conduct our clinical trial so that rHuEPO will be tested and given only to patients who have been treated with all standard therapy for MM. Thus, the drugs below are not in direct competition to our drug. However, rHuEPO may improve the current treatments and therefore may be supplementary to them, as follows:




Thalidomide is effectivein approximately one-third of patients (for a certain period of time) with advanced disease and is synergisticwith other agents active in multiple myeloma. Its exact mechanismof action is unclear, but inhibition of angiogenesis, modulationof cytokines, and immunological effects are probably involved.Thalidomide, as a single agent or in combination with steroids, is now the standard first line treatmentfor relapsed or refractory myeloma (if not used before) and is also being used asfrontline and maintenance treatment. Newer derivatives ofthalidomide, such as revlimid or lenalidomide (formerly CC5013), have potentially greater biological activityand fewer adverse effects, including teratogenicity. Preliminarystudies show a response in 30-50% of patients with refractorydisease. Thalidomide has severe side effects such as flu-like symptoms, constipation, neuropathy and thrombophilia, and has not yet demonstrated survival advantage.




Lenalidomide (Revlimid) is used with dexamethasone to treat patients with multiple myeloma who have already had another treatment. It is a small molecular analog of thalidomide that was originally found based on its ability to effectively inhibit tumor necrosis factor production. Lenalidomide is 50,000 times more potent than thalidomide in inhibiting tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and has less severe adverse drug reactions. Nonetheless, lenalidomide, like its parent compound thalidomide, causes venous thromboembolism (VTE), a potentially serious complication with their use.




Bortezomib (Velcade)inhibits the proteasome, an intracellular organelleresponsible for protein disposal. The response rate to bortezomibin extensively treated myeloma is around 50%. The drug hasrecently been approved by the FDAbased on phase 2 clinical results. The drug has several serious side effects, including neuropathy.











1 http://dceg.cancer.gov/files/genomicscourse/meropol-011007.pdf


2IMS Healthhttp://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1453543620080515


3IMS Healthhttp://www.thepharmaletter.com/file/46150/multiple-myeloma-market-will-more- than-double-to-53-billion-in-2018.html


4According to  IMS Health -http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1453543620080515


5http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aQHENps19ldg


6http://ir.celgene.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=111960&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1520733&highlight=


33




Traditional chemotherapy treatment includes melphalan and prednisone, nowused sparingly because of its propensity to compromise collectionof haematopoietic stem cells, other combinations, and regimenscontaining high dose corticosteroids. The latter-includingdexamethasone; vincristine, doxorubicin, and dexamethasone;and cyclophosphamide, vincristine, doxorubicin, and methylprednisolone -arepreferred for transplant candidates.




High dose chemotherapy, particularly melphalan, with autologoushaematopoietic stem cell transplantation improves response ratesand their duration and survival compared with conventional chemotherapy.It is now commonly used as consolidation treatment. Unfortunately, even after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation,relapse is only a matter of time, although a minority of patientsseems to survive over a decade in remission (“operational cure”).Maintenance treatment after transplantation with corticosteroidsor αinterferon is often prescribed in an attempt to delay relapse. Althoughthis probably does prolong the duration of remission, it isunclear if it confers a survival benefit.




Allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation might potentially cure aproportion of patients through immunologically mediated graftversus myeloma effect. However, this procedure remains highly experimental at the present time. High mortality related to treatmenthas been a problem historically, but the use of safer preparativeregimens of reduced intensity could improve long term results.




Supply and Manufacturing




We currently have no manufacturing capabilities and do not intend to establish any such capabilities.




rHuEPO for the treatment of MM




We believe that we will either be able to purchase Recombinant Erythropoietin (rHuEPO) from existing pharmaceutical companies or to enter into collaborative agreements with contract manufacturers or other third-parties to obtain sufficient inventory to satisfy the clinical supply needs for our planned development program for the treatment of MM.




DOS




Under the terms of the license agreement, Presidio became responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to the DOS program.




General




At the time of commercial sale, to the extent possible and commercially practicable, we plan to engage a back-up supplier for each of our product candidates. Until such time, we expect that we will rely on a single contract manufacturer to produce each of our product candidates under cGMP regulations. Our third-party manufacturers have a limited number of facilities in which our product candidates can be produced and will have limited experience in manufacturing our product candidates in quantities sufficient for conducting clinical trials or for commercialization. Our third-party manufacturers will have other clients and may have other priorities that could affect our contractor’s ability to perform the work satisfactorily and/or on a timely basis. Both of these occurrences would be beyond our control.  We anticipate that we will similarly rely on contract manufacturers for our future proprietary product candidates.




We expect to similarly rely on contract manufacturing relationships for any products that we may in-license or acquire in the future. However, there can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully contract with such manufacturers on terms acceptable to us, or at all.




34




Contract manufacturers are subject to ongoing periodic inspections by the FDA, the US Drug Enforcement Agency and corresponding state and local agencies to ensure strict compliance with cGMP and other state and federal regulations. We do not have control over third-party manufacturers’ compliance with these regulations and standards, other than through contractual obligations.




If we need to change manufacturers, the FDA and corresponding foreign regulatory agencies must approve these new manufacturers in advance, which will involve testing and additional inspections to ensure compliance with FDA regulations and standards and may require significant lead times and delay. Furthermore, switching manufacturers may be difficult because the number of potential manufacturers is limited. It may be difficult or impossible for us to find a replacement manufacturer quickly or on terms acceptable to us, or at all.




Government and Industry Regulation




Numerous governmental authorities, principally the FDA and corresponding state and foreign regulatory agencies, impose substantial regulations upon the clinical development, manufacture and marketing of our drug candidates and technologies, as well as our ongoing research and development activities. None of our drug candidates have been approved for sale in any market in which we have marketing rights. Before marketing in the US, any drug that we develop must undergo rigorous pre-clinical testing and clinical trials and an extensive regulatory approval process implemented by the FDA, under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938, as amended. The FDA regulates, among other things, the pre-clinical and clinical testing, safety, efficacy, approval, manufacturing, record keeping, adverse event reporting, packaging, labeling, storage, advertising, promotion, export, sale and distribution of biopharmaceutical products.




The regulatory review and approval process is lengthy, expensive and uncertain. We are required to submit extensive pre-clinical and clinical data and supporting information to the FDA for each indication or use to establish a drug candidate’s safety and efficacy before we can secure FDA approval. The approval process takes many years, requires the expenditure of substantial resources and may involve ongoing requirements for post-marketing studies or surveillance. Before commencing clinical trials in humans, we must submit an IND to the FDA containing, among other things, pre-clinical data, chemistry, manufacturing and control information, and an investigative plan. Our submission of an IND may not result in FDA authorization to commence a clinical trial.




The Company was granted an Orphan-drug designation from the FDA in May 2011 for its Recombinant Erythropoietin in the US. Orphan-drug designation is granted by the FDA Office of Orphan Drug Products to novel drugs or biologics that treat a rare disease or condition affecting fewer than 200,000 patients in the US. The designation provides the drug developer with a seven-year period of US marketing exclusivity if the drug is the first of its type approved for the specified indication or if it demonstrates superior safety, efficacy, or a major contribution to patient care versus another drug of its type previously granted the designation for the same indication, as well as with tax credits for clinical research costs, the ability to apply for annual grant funding, clinical research trial design assistance and waiver of Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) filing fees.




The Company may apply the European Medicines Agency in order to obtain Orphan-drug designation for its Recombinant Erythropoietin in Europe. Orphan designation is granted by the European Medicines Agency, following a positive opinion from the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products, to a medicinal product that is intended for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of a life-threatening or a chronically debilitating condition affecting not more than five in 10,000 persons in the European Community when the application for designation is submitted. Orphan drug designation provides the sponsor with access to the Centralized Procedure for the application for marketing authorization, protocol assistance, up to a 100% reduction in fees related to a marketing authorization application, pre-authorization inspection and post-authorization activities, and could provide ten years of market exclusivity in the EU, once approved for the treatment of multiple myeloma.




35




The FDA may permit expedited development, evaluation, and marketing of new therapies intended to treat persons with serious or life-threatening conditions for which there is an unmet medical need under its fast track drug development programs. A sponsor can apply for fast track designation at the time of submission of an IND (investigational new drug), or at any time prior to receiving marketing approval of the NDA (new drug application). To receive fast track designation, an applicant must demonstrate that the drug:




·
is intended to treat a serious or life-threatening condition;




·
is intended to treat a serious aspect of the condition; and




·
has the potential to address unmet medical needs, and this potential is being evaluated in the planned drug development program.




Clinical testing must meet requirements for institutional review board oversight, informed consent and good clinical practices, and must be conducted pursuant to an IND, unless exempted.




For purposes of NDA approval, clinical trials are typically conducted in the following sequential phases:




·
Phase 1: The drug is administered to a small group of humans, either healthy volunteers or patients, to test for safety, dosage tolerance, absorption, metabolism, excretion, and clinical pharmacology.




·
Phase 2: Studies are conducted on a larger number of patients to assess the efficacy of the product, to ascertain dose tolerance and the optimal dose range, and to gather additional data relating to safety and potential adverse events.




·
Phase 3: Studies establish safety and efficacy in an expanded patient population.




·
Phase 4: The FDA may require Phase 4 post-marketing studies to find out more about the drug’s long-term risks, benefits, and optimal use, or to test the drug in different populations, such as children.




The length of time necessary to complete clinical trials varies significantly and may be difficult to predict. Clinical results are frequently susceptible to varying interpretations that may delay, limit or prevent regulatory approvals. Additional factors that can cause delay or termination of our clinical trials, or that may increase the costs of these trials, include:




·
slow patient enrollment due to the nature of the clinical trial plan, the proximity of patients to clinical sites, the eligibility criteria for participation in the study or other factors, and the number of sites participating in the trial;




·
inadequately trained or insufficient personnel at the study site to assist in overseeing and monitoring clinical trials or delays in approvals from a study site’s review board;




·
longer treatment time required to demonstrate efficacy or determine the appropriate product dose;




·
insufficient supply of the drug candidates;




·
adverse medical events or side effects in treated patients; and




·
ineffectiveness of the drug candidates.




In addition, the FDA may place a clinical trial on hold or terminate it if it concludes that subjects are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk. Any drug is likely to produce some toxicity or undesirable side effects when administered at sufficiently high doses and/or for a sufficiently long period of time. Unacceptable toxicity or side effects may occur at any dose level at any time in the course of studies designed to identify unacceptable effects of a drug candidate, known as toxicological studies, or clinical trials of drug candidates. The appearance of any unacceptable toxicity or side effect could cause us or regulatory authorities to interrupt, limit, delay or abort the development of any of our drug candidates and could ultimately prevent approval by the FDA or foreign regulatory authorities for any or all targeted indications.




36




Before receiving FDA approval to market a product, we must demonstrate that the product is safe and effective for its intended use by submitting to the FDA an NDA containing the pre-clinical and clinical data that have been accumulated, together with chemistry and manufacturing and controls specifications and information, and proposed labeling, among other things. The FDA may refuse to accept an NDA for filing if certain content criteria are not met and, even after accepting an NDA, the FDA may often require additional information, including clinical data, before approval of marketing a product.




As part of the approval process, the FDA must inspect and approve each manufacturing facility. Among the conditions of approval is the requirement that a manufacturer’s quality control and manufacturing procedures conform to cGMP. Manufacturers must expend time, money and effort to ensure compliance with cGMP, and the FDA conducts periodic inspections to certify compliance. It may be difficult for our manufacturers or us to comply with the applicable cGMP and other FDA regulatory requirements. If we or our contract manufacturers fail to comply, then the FDA will not allow us to market products that have been affected by the failure.




If the FDA grants approval, the approval will be limited to those disease states, conditions and patient populations for which the product is safe and effective, as demonstrated through clinical studies. Further, a product may be marketed only in those dosage forms and for those indications approved in the NDA. Certain changes to an approved NDA, including, with certain exceptions, any changes to labeling, require approval of a supplemental application before the drug may be marketed as changed. Any products that we manufacture or distribute pursuant to FDA approvals are subject to continuing regulation by the FDA, including compliance with cGMP and the reporting of adverse experiences with the drugs. The nature of marketing claims that the FDA will permit us to make in the labeling and advertising of our products will be limited to those specified in an FDA approval, and the advertising of our products will be subject to comprehensive regulation by the FDA. Claims exceeding those that are approved will constitute a violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act or regulatory requirements at any time during the product development process, approval process, or after approval may result in agency enforcement actions, including withdrawal of approval, recall, seizure of products, injunctions, fines and/or civil or criminal penalties. Any agency enforcement action could have a material adverse effect on our business.




Should we wish to market our products outside the US, we must receive marketing authorization from the appropriate foreign regulatory authorities. The requirements governing the conduct of clinical trials, marketing authorization, pricing and reimbursement vary widely from country to country. At present, companies are typically required to apply for foreign marketing authorizations at a national level. However, within the EU, registration procedures are available to companies wishing to market a product in more than one EU member state. Typically, if the regulatory authority is satisfied that a company has presented adequate evidence of safety, quality and efficacy, then the regulatory authority will grant a marketing authorization. This foreign regulatory approval process, however, involves risks similar or identical to the risks associated with FDA approval discussed above, and therefore we cannot guarantee that we will be able to obtain the appropriate marketing authorization for any product in any particular country.  Our current development strategy calls for us to seek marketing authorization for our drug candidates outside the United States.




Failure to comply with applicable federal, state and foreign laws and regulations would likely have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, federal, state and foreign laws and regulations regarding the manufacture and sale of new drugs are subject to future changes. We cannot predict the likelihood, nature, effect or extent of adverse governmental regulation that might arise from future legislative or administrative action, either in the US or abroad.




37




Organizational structure




Our wholly-owned subsidiary, Xtepo Ltd. is an Israeli privately-held company incorporated in November 2009 for the execution of the Bio-Gal transaction and which holds the exclusive license of the use patent of rHuEPO drug for multiple myeloma.




Our wholly-owned subsidiaries, XTL Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. and XTL Development, Inc., are each incorporated in Delaware. Since November 2008, these companies have not been active.




Property, Plant and Equipment




Since August 2010 we lease offices of approximately 255 square meters, in Herzliya, Israel. The basic lease period is for 36 months with an option for an additional 24-month period. In addition, the Company has the right to terminate the agreement after 22 months and/or on the date of an alternative tenant in its place, pursuant to approval of the landlord.




To our knowledge, there are no environmental issues that affect our use of the properties that we lease.





ITEM 4A. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS





None.




38


ITEM 5. OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS




The following discussion and analysis contains forward-looking statements about our plans and expectations of what may happen in the future. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and estimates that are inherently subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and our results could differ materially from the results anticipated by our forward-looking statements as a result of many known or unknown factors, including, but not limited to, those factors discussed in “Item 3. Key Information–Risk Factors” and “Item 4. Information on the Company.” See also the “Special Cautionary Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” set forth above.




You should read the following discussion and analysis in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements, including the related notes, prepared in accordance with IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) for the years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, and as of December 31, 2010 and 2009, contained in “Item 18. Financial Statements” and with any other selected financial data included elsewhere in this annual report.




In April 2009, the Company was de-listed from NASDAQ after the failure of the Bicifadine clinical trial. At the same time, the Company became primarily listed on TASE (Tel Aviv Stock Exchange) and therefore is not entitled to the exemptions previously granted in Israel due to its listing on NASDAQ.




Pursuant to the requirement to comply with all the Israeli listing requirements, the Company adopted IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) as the accounting policy of the Company starting on 2009 and effective since January 1, 2007.




Selected Financial Data -




The tables below present selected financial data for the fiscal years ended as of December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008.  We have derived the selected financial data for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008 from our audited consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this report and prepared in accordance with IFRS issued by the IASB.  You should read the selected financial data in conjunction with “Item 3. Key Information” and “Item 8. Financial Information” and “Item 18. Financial Statements.”




Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income:Year ended December 31,2010


2009


2008U.S dollars in thousands (except per share data)Revenues


-



-



5,940Cost of revenues


-



-



1,841Gross profit


-



-



4,099Research and development costs


64



-



11,722General and administrative expenses (income)


1,222



(2,429
)
*)

3,937Impairment loss of intangible asset


-



-



7,500Other gains (losses), net


30



139



288Operating income (loss)


(1,256
)


2,568



(18,772
)Finance income


6



6



331Finance costs


7



10



17Financial income (costs), net


(1
)


(4
)


314Income (loss) before taxes on income


(1,257
)


2,564



(18,458
)tax benefit


-



(23
)


(31
)Net income (loss) for the year attributable to equity holders of the parent


(1,257
)


2,587



(18,427
)Basic and diluted earnings (loss) per share (in U.S. dollars)


(0.011
)


0.044



(0.315
)Weighted average number of issued ordinary shares


113,397,846



58,561,065



58,553,864




*) Including reduced -expenses which result from forfeiture of shares that were contingent on the performance of the former chairman and former CEO, see also Note 15b to the financial statements.


39




Consolidated Statements of Financial Position Data:As of December 31,2010


2009


2008U.S dollars in thousandsCash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and trading and marketable securities


1,066



412



2,924Working capital


259



(151
)


1,433Total assets


3,797



715



3,402Long term obligations


-



-



-Total shareholders' equity


2,834



7



1,474




Overview




We are a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the acquisition and development of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of unmet medical needs, particularly the treatment of multiple myeloma, or MM and Hepatitis C. To date, we have not received approval for the sale of any of our drug candidates in any market and, therefore, have not generated any commercial revenues from the sales of our drug candidates.




We were established as a corporation under the laws of the State of Israel in 1993, and commenced operations to use and commercialize technology developed at the Weizmann Institute, in Rehovot, Israel. Since commencing operations, our activities have been primarily devoted to developing our technologies and drug candidates, acquiring pre-clinical and clinical-stage compounds, raising capital, purchasing assets for our facilities, and recruiting personnel. We are a development stage company and have had no product sales to date. Our major sources of working capital have been proceeds from various private placements of equity securities, option and warrant exercises, from our initial public offering and from our placing and open offer transaction, and private investments in public equities.




We have incurred negative cash flow from operations each year since our inception and we anticipate incurring negative cash flows from operating activities for the foreseeable future. We have spent, and expect to continue to spend, substantial amounts in connection with implementing our business strategy, including our planned product development efforts, our clinical trials and potential in-licensing and acquisition opportunities.




We did not have revenues in 2010 and 2009. Our revenues for the year ended December 31, 2008 have consisted of license fees from Presidio. We recognized the upfront non-refundable payment from Presidio as license fee revenue over our period of significant involvement.  See “Item 4. Information on the Company – History and Development of XTL.”




40




We did not have cost of revenues in 2010 and 2009. Our cost of revenues for the year ended December 31, 2008 consisted of costs related to the DOS program, including cost of patent rights and other assets that were acquired from Vivoquest and later on out-licensed to Presidio. See “Item 4. Information on the Company – History and Development of XTL.”




Our research and development expenses in 2010 consisted primarily expenses involved in the implementation of the rHuEPO drug clinical trial development plan designed to treat cancer patients with multiple myeloma comprising, among others, costs in connection with medical regulation, patent registration costs, medical consulting costs. Additionally, we had amortization expenses of the exclusive right to examine a medical technology in the field of the immune system. We did not have research and development expenses in 2009. Our research and development costs for the years ended December 31, 2008 consist primarily of salaries and related personnel costs, consultant fees and other third-parties' expenses related to clinical and laboratory development, license and milestone fees, facilities-related and other expenses relating to the design, development, testing, and enhancement of our product candidates. We capitalize our research and development costs if we have a reasonable base to believe in the assets related to these expenses. Additionally, the Company reviews every quarter the assumptions which lead it to believe in these assets and assesses the necessity to record impairment loss according to IAS 36 (See note 2f to the consolidated financial statements: significant accounting policy - intangible assets). In all other cases the Company expenses the research and development cost as they are incurred.




Our general and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries, consultant fees, and related expenses for executive, finance and other administrative personnel, professional fees, director fees and other corporate expenses, including investor relations, and facilities related expenses.  We expense our general and administrative expenses as they are incurred. In 2009, we recorded a reversal of non cash option compensation expenses that related to options granted to our former chairman and former CEO in an amount of approximately $ 4.1 million according to IFRS 2 and as a result the net general and administrative expenses ended with negative expenses (see “non-cash option compensation” below).




Our business development costs consist primarily of salaries and related expenses for business development personnel, travel, professional fees and transaction advisory fees to third party intermediaries. Our business development activities are related to partnering activities for our drug programs, seeking new development collaborations and in-licensing opportunities. According to IFRS, business development expenses are presented based on the function of expense in general and administrative. Therefore, for the years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, business development expenses are not presented in a different line item, as it used to be presented under the US GAAP. We expense our business development expenses as they are incurred. The transaction advisory fee associated with the Bicifadine transaction in the form of a SAR was revalued based on the then current fair value, at each subsequent reporting date. On September 30, 2009, in accordance with IFRS 2 and after the Company's management examined the issue, in furtherance to the Company’s financial condition, the classification of the transaction was modified to an equity-settled transaction.




Our results of operations include non-cash compensation expense as a result of the grants of stock options. Compensation expense for awards of options granted to employees and directors represents the fair value of the award recorded over the respective vesting periods of the individual stock options according to the Black-Scholes valuation model. The expense is included in the respective categories of expense in the statement of comprehensive income. In 2009 we reversed a significant amount of $4.1 million related to the former Chairman's and former CEO's non-cash option compensation expenses granted in August 2005 (and were canceled and re-granted in December 2007) and March 2006, respectively, and which were subject to a market capitalization/share price milestone(s)that were not achieved. According to IFRS 2, due to the fact that these options were linked to market capitalization/share price milestone(s), we were required to reverse the accumulated related expenses that were recorded over the years since the grant date, immediately after their termination from the company in March-April 2009 and after we acknowledged that the milestone(s) were not achieved. We experienced a  reduction in non-cash compensation in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 (even excluding the reversal of the options related to the former Chairman and CEO) due to the restructuring plan of the Company from November 2008 and the reduction in the number of employees (see note 16b to the consolidated financial statements). We expect to incur significant increase on the non-cash compensation for the future, primarily due to the increase in the number of employees and additional grants of options to current employees.




41




For awards of options and warrants to consultants and other third-parties, according to IFRS 2 the treatment of such options and warrants is the same as employee options compensation expense (see note 2n to the consolidated financial statements). We record compensation expense based on the fair value of the award at the grant date according to the Black-Scholes valuation model. According to the IFRS 2, the Company recognizes options expenses using the graded vesting method (accelerated amortization). Graded vesting means that portions of a single option grant will vest on several dates, equal to the number of tranches. The company treats each tranche as a separate share option grant; because each tranche has a different vesting period, and hence the fair value of each tranche is different. Therefore, under this method the compensation cost amortization is accelerated to earlier periods in the overall vesting period.




Our planned clinical trials will be lengthy and expensive. Even if these trials show that our drug candidates are effective in treating certain indications, there is no guarantee that we will be able to record commercial sales of any of our product candidates in the near future or generate licensing revenues from upfront payments associated with out-licensing transactions. In addition, we expect losses to continue as we continue to fund development of our drug candidates. As we continue our development efforts, we may enter into additional third-party collaborative agreements and may incur additional expenses, such as licensing fees and milestone payments. As a result, our periodical results may fluctuate and a period-by-period comparison of our operating results may not be a meaningful indication of our future performance.




Results of Operations




Years Ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008




Revenues. The Company did not produce any revenues for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009, compared to $5,940 thousand, for the year ended December 31, 2008. Revenues for the year 2008 were due to the recognition of license revenue associated with the Presidio out-licensing agreement. We do not anticipate to recognize material revenue in 2011.




Cost of Revenues. There was no cost of revenues for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009, compared to $1,841 thousand for the year ended December 31, 2008. Costs of revenues for the year 2008 were due to the out-licensing transaction of the DOS program to Presidio.




Research and Development Costs. Research and development expenses in 2010 amounted to $64 thousand. We had no research and development expenses in 2009 because the clinical trial of Bicifadine was terminated in November 2008 (see “2009 Restructuring” below and also see Note 9c to the financial statements). Research and development expenses in 2008 totaled approximately $ 11,722 thousand comprising principally expenses involved in the Phase 2b clinical trial of Bicifadine until we announced that it had not met its endpoints and, therefore, it was terminated (November 2008). See 2008 Restructuring below and also see “Item 10. Additional Information -Material Contracts” and “Item 4. Information on the Company.”




Excluding non-cash compensation costs, we expect to increase our level of research and development costs during 2011 mainly due to the plan to initiate/receipt of approval to initiate the phase 2 clinical trial on rHuEPO for the treatment of multiple myeloma.




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General and Administrative Expenses. General and administrative expenses in 2010 totaled approximately $1,222 thousand, compared to general and administrative income (decrease in expenses) of approximately $2,429 thousand in 2009 and expenses of approximately $3,937 thousand in 2008. The increase in general and administrative expenses in 2010 compared to 2009 and the decrease in general and administrative expenses in 2009 compared to 2008 were due mainly to the following reasons:




During 2009, the Company recorded a decrease in general and administrative expenses after expenses from previous years in respect of options of the former chairman and former CEO of the Company were reversed because the terms of the options that were contingent on the performance were not met. The effect of the options which were forfeited immediately after their departure amounted to approximately $4.1 million. General and administrative expenses in 2009 less the effect of the reverse of expenses in respect of options of the former chairman and former CEO of the Company totaled approximately $1,672 thousand, compared to approximately $ 1,222 thousand in 2010, a decrease of approximately $450 thousand (27%) which mainly arises from the decrease in salary expenses following the restructuring plan in the Company in 2009, decrease in office lease expenses (terminating the US office lease agreement, changing the Israeli offices while reducing office space) and decrease in the Company's operating expenses as part of the restructuring plan performed by the Company immediately after announcing the failure to achieve the Bicifadine drug clinical trial endpoints at the end of 2008.




The decrease in salary expenses due to restructuring plan (including in respect of options to employees and service providers and the effect of reverse of expenses, as above) and the decrease in the Company's operating expenses as part of that restructuring plan effected by the Company at the end of 2008 led to a decrease in general and administrative expenses.




Excluding non-cash compensation costs, we expect to increase our level of general and administrative costs during 2011 compared to 2010. This is because during most of 2010, the Company did not have any research and development operations and employed only two full-time employees and four service providers / consultants (two of whom are officers).




Other gains (losses), net.The Company derived other gains in 2010 of approximately $30 thousand which originated from reduced trade payables provisions of foreign subsidiaries from previous years, in 2009 approximately $139 thousand which originated from settlement agreements entered into with different suppliers in respect of activity in previous years, among others, in respect of the clinical trial of Bicifadine (see Notes 14b(1) to the financial statements). The Company derived other gains in 2008 of approximately $288 thousand which originated from sale of property, plant and equipment. We also recorded a loss of $7,500 thousand on impairment of intangible asset (patent), representing the development rights to the Bicifadine because the results of Phase 2b clinical trial of Bicifadine for diabetic neuropathic pain failed to meet its clinical endpoints and, therefore, the development activity was terminated (see Note 9c to the financial statements).




Net Financial expenses.  Financial expenses for the year ended December 31, 2010, amounted to $1 thousand compared to net financial expenses of $4 thousand and financial income of $314 thousand for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008 respectively. The decrease in the net financial income for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009 compared to 2008 was due primarily to the reduction of the invested funds during the years and the reduction of the banks' deposit interest rate (see cash flow report to the consolidated financial statements).




Income Taxes  Our income tax expense (tax benefit) is attributable to taxable income (losses) from the continuing operations of our US subsidiaries and the US permanent establishment.  We had no income tax expense for the year ended December 31, 2010 due to the losses incurred and we did not recognize any deferred tax benefits, since it is not more likely than not that we will be able to generate profits in the future to realize the deferred taxes.  Tax benefit for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, amounted to $23,000 and $31,000 respectively. In November 2009 Congress passed the Worker Homeownership & Business Assistance Act of 2009 which allows businesses to carry back operating losses for up to 5 years.  As a result of this Act, the Company was able to carry back its 2008 and 2009 losses to tax years ended December 31, 2003 and 2004. This benefit was partially offset by New York State Franchise tax associated with the US permanent establishment.


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2009 Restructuring




Following the failure of the Bicifadine trial in November 2008, we terminated the employment of most of our employees. As a result, we incurred a payment of $420 thousand during 2009 related to employee dismissal costs, all of which were accrued in 2008. In February 2009, we appointed a CEO whose terms of employment have been approved in March 2010, effective August 3, 2010, upon the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction. In July 2009, we appointed a CFO.




2008 Restructuring




During the first half of 2008, we terminated the employment of 11 research and development employees in the DOS program, which was out-licensed to Presidio in 2008. As a result, we incurred a charge of $191 thousand in research and development during 2008 related to employee dismissal costs, all of which were paid in 2008.




In December 2008, we implemented a restructuring plan following the failure of the Bicifadine Phase 2b clinical trial. We notified nine of our remaining employees (six in research and development, two in general and administrative and one in business development) that they will be terminated, representing approximately 75% of our then remaining workforce. In addition, in December 2008, we announced that our then Chief Executive Officer would be departing in 2009. The remaining employees were tasked with seeking potential assets or a company to merge into XTL, or for assisting in the liquidation and/or disposition of XTL’s remaining assets. As a result, we took a charge of $420 thousand in 2008 relating to employee dismissal costs, $110 thousand of which was included in research and development costs, $310 thousand of which was included in general and administrative expenses.




As of December 31, 2008, 5 employees left XTL under the 2008 Restructuring and $0 of dismissal costs were paid. As of December 31, 2008 approximately $420 thousand in employee dismissal obligations were included in “liability in respect to employee severance obligations,” and was all subsequently paid in the first quarter of 2009.




Critical Accounting Policies




Basis of presentation of the financial statements Until December 31, 2008, the consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with US GAAP. Effective January 1, 2009, the Group adopted International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) and this pursuant to the provisions of Accounting Standard No. 29, “Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)” which was published by the Israel Accounting Standards Board.




The Company's financial statements as of December 31, 2010 and 2009 and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2010 have been prepared in accordance with IFRS and Interpretations originated by the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC) and include the additional disclosure in accordance with the Israeli Securities Regulations (Annual Financial Statements), 2010.




The accounting policies described below are consistent with those of all periods presented, unless it is indicated otherwise.




The consolidated financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.




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The preparation of financial statements in conformity with IFRS requires the use of certain critical accounting estimates. It also requires the Company's management to exercise its judgment in the process of applying the Group's accounting policies. The areas that involve judgment which has significant effect or complexity or where assumptions and estimates are significant to the consolidated financial statements are disclosed in Note 3. Actual results could significantly differ from the estimates and assumptions used by the Company's management.




The Group's operating cycle is 12 months.




The Group analyses the expenses recognized in the statement of comprehensive income by classification based on the function of expense.




They comprise of:




1. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS),




2. International Accounting Standards (IAS), and




3. Interpretations originated by the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC) or the former Standing Interpretations Committee (SIC).




The Company's financial statements as of December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008 and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2010 have been prepared in accordance with IFRS and Interpretations originated by the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC) and include the additional disclosure in accordance with the Israeli Securities Regulations (Annual Financial Statements), 2010.




The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standard). The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amount of assets and liabilities and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of our financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the applicable period. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.




We define critical accounting policies as those that are reflective of significant judgments and uncertainties and which may potentially result in materially different results under different assumptions and conditions. In applying these critical accounting policies, our management uses its judgment to determine the appropriate assumptions to be used in making certain estimates. These estimates are subject to an inherent degree of uncertainty. Our critical accounting policies include the following:




Share-based payment transactions: The Company operates a number of share-based payment plans to employees and to other service providers who render services that are similar to employees' services that are settled with the Company's equity instruments. In this framework, the Company grants employees, from time to time, and, at its election, options to purchase Company shares. The fair value of services received from employees in consideration of the grant of options is recognized as an expense in the statement of comprehensive income and correspondingly carried to equity. The total amount recognized as an expense over the vesting term of the options (the term over which all pre-established vesting conditions are expected to be satisfied) is determined by reference to the fair value of the options granted at grant date, except the effect of any non-market vesting conditions.




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Non-market vesting conditions are included in the assumptions used in estimating the number of options that are expected to vest. In each reporting date, the Company revises its estimates of the number of options that are expected to vest based on the non-market vesting conditions and recognizes the impact of the revision to original estimates, if any, in the statement of comprehensive income (loss) with a corresponding adjustment in equity.




The proceeds received when the options are exercised into shares net of any directly attributable transaction costs are credited to share capital (nominal value) and share premium when the options are exercised.




Share-based payments that were granted before November 7, 2002 or that vested before January 1, 2007 are not accounted for retroactively pursuant to IFRS 2, as under the exemption of IFRS 1.




Share-based payments for share appreciation rights with settlement alternatives, at the Company's sole discretion, which were granted to the Company's service provider, were accounted in the past as a cash-settled grant. The Company re-measured the value of the liability at each reporting date. On September 30, 2009, in accordance with IFRS 2 and after the Company's management examined the issue, in furtherance to the Company's financial condition (see Note 1c to the financial statements), the classification of the transaction was modified to an equity-settled transaction. The Company is not obligated to settle the transaction in cash.




Share-based payment transactions in which the Company acquired assets as consideration for the Company's equity instruments are measured at the value of the assets acquired. The fair value of stock options granted with service conditions is determined using the Black-Scholes valuation model. Such value is recognized as an expense over the service period, net of estimated forfeitures, using the graded vesting method under IFRS 2. The fair value of stock options granted to the former Chairman and former CEO with market conditions was determined using a Monte Carlo Simulation method. Such value is recognized as an expense using the accelerated method under IFRS 2. The options of the former Chairman and former CEO mentioned above expired after their departure from the Company in March and April, 2009 respectively and the accumulated expenses related to these options recorded over the years were reversed in year 2009 (see note 15b to the consolidated financial statements).




The estimation of stock awards that will ultimately vest requires significant judgment, and to the extent actual results or updated estimates differ from our current estimates, such amounts will be recorded as a cumulative adjustment in the period those estimates are revised. We consider many factors when estimating expected forfeitures, including types of awards, employee class, and historical experience. Actual results, and future changes in estimates, may differ substantially from our current estimates.




Research and development expenses: The Company recognizes research and development expenses in the statement of comprehensive income when such expenses are incurred. An intangible asset arising from a development project is recognized when the following criteria are met:




-
It is technically feasible to complete the intangible asset so that it will be available for use;


-
Management intends to complete the intangible asset and use or sell it;


-
There is an ability to use or sell the intangible asset;


-
It can be demonstrated how the intangible asset will generate probable future economic benefits;


-
Adequate technical, financial and other resources to complete the development and to use or sell the intangible asset are available; and


-
The expenditure attributable to the intangible asset during its development can be reliably measured.





Other development expenditures that do not meet these criteria are recognized as an expense as incurred. During the reported period, the Group did not capitalize development costs to intangible assets.




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Unamortized intangible assets - amortization of an asset on a straight-line basis over its useful life begins when development procedure is complete and the asset is available for use. These assets are reviewed for impairment once a year or whenever there are indicators of a possible impairment, in accordance with the provisions of IAS 36, “Impairment of Assets”.




Acquired development assets are not systematically amortized and are tested for impairment annually in accordance with the provisions of IAS 36, “Impairment of Assets”.




The Company recognizes at fair value an intangible asset relating to research and development costs acquired from third parties.




Amortized intangible assets - an exclusive right to examine a medical technology in the field of the immune system with a finite life of 15 months is amortized on a straight-line basis over the useful life of this right.




Government grants for approved projects were deducted from the relevant expense.




Accruals for Clinical Research Organization and Clinical Site Costs.  We make estimates of costs incurred to date in relation to external clinical research organizations, or CROs, and clinical site costs. We analyze the progress of clinical trials, including levels of patient enrollment, invoices received and contracted costs when evaluating the adequacy of the amount expensed and the related prepaid asset and accrued liability. Significant judgments and estimates must be made and used in determining the accrued balance in any accounting period. With respect to clinical site costs, the financial terms of these agreements are subject to negotiation and vary from contract to contract. Payments under these contracts may be uneven, and depend on factors such as the achievement of certain events, the successful accrual of patients, the completion of portions of the clinical trial or similar conditions. The objective of our policy is to match the recording of expenses in our financial statements to the actual services received and efforts expended. As such, expense accruals related to clinical site costs are recognized based on our estimate of the degree of completion of the event or events specified in the specific clinical study or trial contract.




Revenue Recognition:Revenues are recognized in the statement of comprehensive income when the revenues can be measured reliably, it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the Company and the costs incurred or to be incurred in respect of the transaction can be measured reliably. Revenues are measured at the fair value of the consideration received.




The following specific recognition criteria must also be met before revenue is recognized:




1.
Revenues from transfer of rights to use development which include the Company's involvement during the development period, are recognized on a straight-line basis over the expected term of the agreement.





2.
Revenues from sale of DOS development rights to Presidio and rendering of ongoing services by the Company are recognized as follows:





a)
The fair value of labor services by the Company's employees is recognized over the service term.





b)
The difference between the sale consideration and the fair value of labor services is recognized at the date of transaction as revenues from sale of DOS development rights.





3.
Interest income is recognized on a periodic basis using the effective interest method.





Purchase Price Allocation.  The purchase price allocation for acquisitions requires extensive use of accounting estimates and judgments to allocate the purchase price to the identifiable tangible and intangible assets acquired, including in-process research and development, and liabilities assumed based on their respective fair values. Additionally, we must determine whether the acquisition is considered to be a business combination according to IFRS 3 or a set of net assets according to IAS 16, because a portion of the purchase price can only be allocated to goodwill in a business combination.


47




New and amended IFRS standards and IFRIC interpretations:




Below are standards and amendments to existing standards that have been issued and are effective for reporting periods after January 1, 2010:




Amendment to IAS 7, “Cash Flows Statements” (“the amendment to IAS 7”). This amendment is part of the IASB's annual improvements project published in April 2009. The amendment to IAS 7 requires that only expenditures that result in a recognized asset in the statement of financial position can be classified as investing activities. The amendment to IAS 7 is applied retrospectively for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2010. The Group applied this amendment from January 1, 2010 and its initial adoption had no material impact on the Group's financial statements.




Below are standards, amendments and interpretations to existing standards that are not yet effective and have not been early adopted by the Company:




a)           IFRS 9, “Financial Instruments” (“IFRS 9”). The first part of IFRS 9 which deals with classification and measurement of financial assets was issued in November 2009 (“the first part of IFRS 9”) and it represents the first step in the process to replace IAS 39, “Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement” (“IAS 39”). The first part of IFRS 9 introduces new requirements for classifying and measuring financial assets and is likely to affect the Group's accounting for its financial assets. The first part of IFRS 9 determined, among others, that financial assets should be classified into one of the two following categories: financial assets measured after initial recognition at fair value and financial assets measured after initial recognition at amortized cost. The decision to which category a financial asset should be classified is made on initial recognition. This classification is driven by the entity's business model for managing financial instruments and the contractual characteristics of the cash flows from the instrument.




In October 2010, another part of IFRS 9 was published (“the second part of IFRS 9”) which represents the second step in the process to replace IAS 39. The second part of IFRS 9 includes guidance on financial liabilities and derecognition of financial instruments. The guidance that was added to IFRS 9 in the framework of the second part of IFRS 9, including that addressing measurement and classification of financial liabilities and treating derivatives embedded in financial liabilities, have been relocated from IAS 39 without change in the existing guidance except for financial liabilities that are designated at fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL). According to the new guidance, except for cases outlined therein, entities with financial liabilities designated at FVTPL recognize changes in the fair value due to changes in the liability's credit risk directly in other comprehensive income and this instead of recognition in profit or loss.




There is not subsequent recycling of the amounts in other comprehensive income to profit or loss. But, accumulated gains or losses may be transferred within equity.




Both parts of IFRS 9 are effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2013. Entities may choose to adopt early, but it is not possible for entities to adopt the second part of IFRS 9 without, concurrently, adopting the first part of IFRS 9. However, entities still have the ability to adopt the first part of IFRS 9 without, concurrently, adopting the second part of IFRS 9.




Entities that early adopt prior to January 1, 2012 are not required to restate comparatives.




Currently, the Group has not adopted IFRS 9 early.




The Company does not expect that the adoption of the guidance of IFRS 9 will have a material impact on the financial statements.




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b)           Amendment to IFRS 7, “Financial Instruments: Disclosures” (“IFRS 7”) which was issued in October 2010. The amendment to IFRS 7 requires broader disclosures about financial assets transferred to another party yet they still continue to be included in the Group's statement of financial position and the respective financial liabilities including the interaction between these assets and liabilities. Further, the amendment to IFRS 7 expands the disclosure requirements for derecognized assets yet the exposure to risks and certain rewards associated with the transferred asset still remain. The amendment to IFRS 7 will be applied for annual reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2011. Earlier application is permitted. The Group intends to adopt this amendment from January 1, 2011. The initial adoption of this amendment is not expected to have a material impact on the Group's financial statements.




c)           Amendment to IFRS 7, “Financial Instruments: Disclosures”. This amendment represents part of the improvements to IFRS’s published in May 2010. This amendment changes part of the quantitative and qualitative disclosures required for the nature and extent of risks associated with financial assets and clarifies the interaction between these quantitative and qualitative disclosures. This amendment will be applied for annual reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2011. Earlier application is permitted. The Group intends to adopt this amendment from January 1, 2011. The initial adoption of this amendment is not expected to have a material impact on the Group's financial statements.




d)           Amendment to IAS 27 (Revised), “Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements” (“the amendment to IAS 27R”). This amendment represents part of the improvements to IFRS’s published in May 2010. The amendment to IAS 27R clarifies that the consequential amendments from IAS 27 made to IAS 21, “The Effect of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates”, IAS 28, “Investments in Associates” and IAS 31, “Interests in Joint Ventures” apply prospectively or retrospectively. The amendment to IAS 27R will be applied for annual reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2010. Earlier application is permitted. The Group intends to adopt this amendment from January 1, 2011. The initial adoption of this amendment is not expected to have a material impact on the Group's financial statements.




Impact of Inflation and Currency Fluctuations




We generate all of our revenues and hold most of our cash, cash equivalents and bank deposits in US dollars. While a substantial amount of our operating expenses are in US dollars, we incur a portion of our expenses in New Israeli Shekels. In addition, we also pay for some of our services and supplies in the local currencies of our suppliers. Since 2009 (after the failure of the Bicifadine clinical trial) the Company’s head office moved to Israel and thus the portion of our expenses in New Israeli Shekels (“NIS”) and our cash held in NIS has increased, mainly due to payment to Israeli employees and suppliers. As a result, we are exposed to the risk that the US dollar will be devalued against the New Israeli Shekel or other currencies, and as result our financial results could be harmed if we are unable to guard against currency fluctuations in Israel or other countries in which services and supplies are obtained in the future. Accordingly, we may enter into currency hedging transactions to decrease the risk of financial exposure from fluctuations in the exchange rates of currencies. These measures, however, may not adequately protect us from the adverse effects of inflation in Israel.  In addition, we are exposed to the risk that the rate of inflation in Israel will exceed the rate of devaluation of the New Israeli Shekel in relation to the dollar or that the timing of any devaluation may lag behind inflation in Israel. To date, our business has not been materially adversely affected by changes in the US dollar exchange rate or by effects of inflation in Israel. Additionally, our future activities could lead us to perform a clinical trial in Israel, which may lead us to reassess our use of the US dollar as our functional currency.




Governmental Economic, Fiscal, Monetary or Political Policies that Materially Affected or Could Materially Affect Our Operations




The income of the Company is subject to corporate tax at the regular rate; the guidance of the amendment to the Income Tax Ordinance, 2005 from August 2008 prescribes a gradual reduction in the corporate tax rates and the resulting corporate tax rates starting 2008 are as follows: 2008 - 27%, 2009 - 26% and 2010 and thereafter - 25%.




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On July 14, 2009, the “Knesset” (Israeli Parliament) passed the Law for Economic Efficiency (Amended Legislation for Implementing the Economic Plan for 2009 and 2010), 2009, which prescribes, among others, an additional gradual reduction in the corporate tax rates starting 2011 to the following tax rates: 2011 - 24%, 2012 - 23%, 2013 - 22%, 2014 - 21%, 2015 - 20%, 2016 and thereafter - 18%.




As of December 31, 2010, XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. did not have any taxable income. As of December 31, 2010, our net operating loss carry forwards for Israeli tax purposes registered on behalf of XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd amounted to approximately $24 million. Under Israeli law, these net-operating losses may be carried forward indefinitely and offset within XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd only, against future taxable income, including capital gains from the sale of assets used in the business, with no expiration date.




In order to obtain tax exemption for the share swap transaction with Bio-Gal pursuant to Sections 104 and 103 to the Israeli Income Tax Ordinance (Revised), 1961, we signed an agreement with the Israeli Tax Authority on July 15, 2010.  Below is the summary of the principal conditions for the share swap and the transfer of the intangible asset:




1.
The balance of the Company's business losses and capital losses for tax purposes was reduced to approximately NIS 80 million (approximately $ 22 million) and approximately NIS 0.7 million (approximately $ 0.19 million), respectively. This item is not to derogate from the Tax Assessing Officer's authority to establish that the balance of losses is actually lower than the abovementioned amounts.




2.
Any losses incurred to the Company prior to the share swap, after their reduction as discussed in paragraph 1 above, will not be offset against any income originating from Xtepo (the transferred company) or against a capital gain from the sale of shares of Xtepo.




3.
Xtepo shareholders will not be allowed to sell their shares in the Company for a period of two years from the end of the year of completion of the transaction (“the Lock-up Period”), subject to any changes in legislation.




4.
The Company and Xtepo both undertake to maintain their main economic activity as it was prior to the transaction during the Lock-up Period.




5.
The Company will not be permitted to sell its holdings in Xtepo for the duration of the Lock-up Period.




It is indicated that the guidance to Sections 104 and 103 to the Israeli Income Tax Ordinance which deal with restructuring and mergers impose statutory limitations and various conditions on the entities participating in the change in structure/merger, among others, restrictions on dilution of holdings from raising by a prospectus or by private placements. The summary of the principles detailed above does not constitute a substitute to the overall articles.




Since April 7, 2009, we did not have a “permanent establishment” and activity in the US, and our subsidiaries do not perform any activity. Our board of directors consists of a majority of Israeli residents and our CEO is domiciled in Israel. However, for the period we did have a “permanent establishment” in the US, any income attributable to such US permanent establishment would be subject to US corporate income tax in the same manner as if we were a US corporation.  The maximum US corporate income tax rate (not including applicable state and local tax rates) is currently at 35%.  In addition, if we had income attributable to the permanent establishment in the US, we may be subject to an additional branch profits tax of 30% on our US effectively connected earnings and profits, subject to adjustment, for that taxable year if certain conditions occur, unless we qualified for the reduced 12.5% US branch profits tax rate pursuant to the United States-Israel tax treaty.  We would be potentially able to credit any foreign taxes that may become due in the future against its US tax liability in connection with income attributable to its US permanent establishment and subject to both US and foreign income tax.




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Liquidity and Capital Resources




We have financed our operations from inception primarily through various private placement transactions, our initial public offering, a placing and open offer transaction, option and warrant exercises, and private investments in public equities. As of December 31, 2010, we had received net proceeds of approximately $77.8  million from various private placement transactions (including net proceeds of $ 1.5 million from the Bio-Gal transaction in August 2010) the November 2007 private placement, net proceeds of $45.7 million from our initial public offering in September 2000, net proceeds of $15.4 million from the 2004 placing and open offer transaction, and proceeds of $2.1 million from the exercise of options and warrants. In addition, after the reporting date, in March 2011, we raised by public issuance of 12,305,000 Ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value each, 6,152,500 warrants (series 1) and 18,457,500 warrants (series 2) on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange an immediate net amount of approximately $ 1.75 million (approximately NIS 6.3 million).




As of December 31, 2010, we had $1.1 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term bank deposits, an increase of $0.6 million from December 31, 2009. Cash used in operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2010, was $0.7 million, as compared to $2.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2009. This decrease in cash used in operating activities was due primarily to the efficiency measures as part of the reorganization plan effected by the Company at the end of 2008 immediately after the discontinued of the Bicifadine clinical trial that ended in November 2008, payments according to the separation agreements with senior employees who departed the Company until May 2009 which result with significant cash payment in the first half of 2009, as well as, reduction of activity until the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction on August 3, 2010.  For the year ended December 31, 2010, the net cash used in investing activities totaled at $0.1 million, as compared to net cash used in investing activities of $0.02 million for the year ended December 31, 2009. The increase in cash used in investment activities was primarily due to the costs related to the Bio-Gal transaction and fixed assets purchased. For the year ended December 31, 2010, net cash provided by financing activities totaled approximately $1.5 million and was primarily due to the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction under which we received this amount. For the year ended December 31, 2009, we did not have any financing activities.




Continuation of our current operations is dependent upon the generation of additional financial resources through agreements for the monetization of our rHuEPO for multiple myeloma, residual in the DOS program or through external financing. We currently anticipate that our cash and cash equivalents and restricted short-term bank deposits, will provide us with sufficient resources to fund our operations for the next 18 months from the date of the report. Nevertheless, since we have no cash flows from operations and due to the nature of our activity as a research and development company, there is substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue operating as a “going concern” beyond this period. We do believe, however, that we will likely seek additional capital during the mentioned period through a planned rights offering and / or public or private equity offerings or debt financings. We have made no determination at this time as to the amount, method or timing of any such financing. Such additional financing may not be available when we need it.




51


Our forecast of the period of time through which our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments will be adequate to support our operations is a forward-looking statement that involves risks and uncertainties. The actual amount of funds we will need in the next 18 months to operate is subject to many factors, some of which are beyond our control.  These factors include the following:
  ·
the accuracy of our financial forecasts;


·
the timing and cost of the in-licensing, partnering and acquisition of new product opportunities;




·
the timing of expenses associated with product development and manufacturing of the proprietary drug candidate that we have acquired from Bio-Gal Ltd. and those that may be in-licensed, partnered or acquired;




·
our ability to achieve our milestones under licensing arrangements; and




·
the costs involved in prosecuting and enforcing patent claims and other intellectual property rights.




We have based our estimate on assumptions that may prove to be inaccurate. We may need to obtain additional funds sooner or in greater amounts than we currently anticipate. Potential sources of financing may be obtained through strategic relationships, public or private sales of our equity or debt securities, and other sources. We may seek to access the public or private equity markets when conditions are favorable due to our long-term capital requirements. We do not have any committed sources of financing at this time, and it is uncertain whether additional funding will be available when we need it on terms that will be acceptable to us, or at all. If we raise funds by selling additional shares of our ordinary shares or other securities convertible into shares of our ordinary shares, the ownership interest of our existing shareholders will be diluted. If we are not able to obtain financing when needed, we may be unable to carry out our business plan and which would raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. As a result, we may have to significantly limit our operations, and our business, financial condition and results of operations would be materially harmed.   See “Item 3. Key Information - Risk Factors - Risks Related to Our Financial Condition.”




The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that we will continue as a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. The factors discussed above, taken together with our limited cash and cash equivalents raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern after the mentioned period of 18 months from the date of the statement of financial position. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary should we be unable to continue as a going concern. In addition, the report of our independent registered public accounting firm covering our 2010 consolidated financial statements, included in this annual report on Form 20-F through incorporation by reference (see “Item 18. Financial Statements”), contains an explanatory paragraph that makes reference to uncertainty about our ability to continue as a going concern after the mentioned period of 18 months from the date of the statement of financial position.





Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements




We have not entered into any transactions with unconsolidated entities whereby we have financial guarantees, subordinated retained interests, derivative instruments or other contingent arrangements that expose us to material continuing risks, contingent liabilities, or any other obligations under a variable interest in an unconsolidated entity that provides us with financing, liquidity, market risk or credit risk support.




Obligations and Commitments




As of December 31, 2010, we had known contractual obligations, commitments and contingencies of $278 thousands which relate to our offices and vehicle operating lease obligations, of which $109 thousands  is due within the next year, with the remaining balance due as per the schedule below.





According to the vehicle operating lease agreements we have the sole right to terminate these agreements with two months paid notice. According to the office lease agreements we have the sole right to terminate this agreement in June 2012. We also have the sole right to extend such office lease period by additional 24 months.


52





We do not carry any contractual obligations, commitments or contingencies relates to research and development operation.




Payment due by period as of December 31, 2010 (in thousands of US$)Contractual obligations

Total


Less than

1 year


1-3

years


3-5

years


More than

5 yearsOperating lease obligations


278



109



169



—



—Total


278



109



169



—



—





Additionally, the VivoQuest license agreement provides for contingent milestone payments triggered by certain regulatory and sales targets. These milestone payments total $34 million, $25 million of which will be due upon or following regulatory approval or actual product sales, and are payable in cash or ordinary shares at our sole discretion. In addition, the license agreement requires that we make royalty payments on product sales. Pursuant to our out-licensing agreement with Presidio, Presidio is obligated to pay us for any contingent milestone consideration owed to VivoQuest pursuant to the XTL and VivoQuest license agreement.





We have undertaken to make contingent milestone payments to DOV Pharmaceutical, Inc. of up to approximately $126.5 million over the life of the license. These milestone payments may be made in either cash and/or our ordinary shares, at our election, with the exception of $5 million in cash, which would due upon or after regulatory approval. We were also obligated to make royalty payments on future product sales net sales.  We ceased development of Bicifadine in November 2008 and since then both XTL Development and DOV ceased the prosecution and maintenance of those patents relating to the Bicifadine. In March 2010, we formally terminated the license agreement. Therefore, we will not be obligated to make any of the aforesaid payments.





Pursuant to our asset purchase agreement to acquire the rights to develop rHuEPO for the treatment of MM from Bio-Gal Ltd., we  are obligated to pay 1% royalties on net sales of the product, as well as a fixed royalty payment in the total amount of $350,000 upon the successful of Phase 2. Such payment of $350,000 mentioned above shall be made to Yeda upon the earlier of (i) six months from the Successful Completion of Phase 2 or (ii) the completion of a successful fundraising by XTL or XTEPO at any time after the completion of the Phase 2 of an amount of minimum $2 million.





In addition, in January 2007, XTL Development and the company committed to pay a transaction advisory fee to certain third party intermediaries in connection with the in-license of Bicifadine from DOV. In October 2007, XTL Development entered into definitive agreements with the third party intermediaries with respect to the binding term sheets signed in 2007 (the “Definitive Agreements”). Under the terms of the Definitive Agreements, the transaction advisory fee was structured in the form of SARs, in the amount equivalent to (i) 3% of our fully diluted ordinary shares at the close of the transaction (representing 1,659,944 ordinary shares NIS 0.1 par value), vesting immediately and exercisable one year after the close of the transaction, and (ii) 7% of our fully diluted ordinary shares at the close of the transaction (representing 3,873,203 ordinary shares NIS 0.1 par value), vesting on a certain milestone event. Payment of the SARs by XTL Development can be satisfied, at our discretion, in cash and/or by issuance of our registered ordinary shares. Upon the exercise of a SAR, the amount paid by XTL Development will be an amount equal to the amount by which the fair market value of one ordinary share on the exercise date exceeds the $1.7 grant price for such SAR (fair market value equals (i) the greater of the closing price of an “ADR” on the exercise date, divided by two, or (ii) the preceding five day ADR closing price average, divided by two). Any vested SARs will expire on January 15, 2017. As of December 31, 2010, the 3% tranche was vested and recorded in our financial statements as capital reserve according to IFRS 2 (see note 2n to the financial statements). The 7% tranche was not vested. In March 2010, we formally terminated the license agreement and therefore all unvested SAR (the 7% tranche) have automatically expired. See also “Item 10. Additional Information - Material Contracts.”




53





Research and Development, Patents and Licenses





Research and development costs in 2010 substantially derived from costs involved in the implementation of the rHuEPO drug Phase 2 clinical trial development plan designed to treat cancer patients with multiple myeloma comprising, among others, costs in connection with medical regulation, patent registration costs, medical consulting costs and amortization expenses of the exclusive right to examine a medical technology in the field of the immune system. We had no research and development expenses in 2009 because the clinical trial of Bicifadine was terminated in November 2008 (see also Note 9c to the financial statements). Research and development expenses in 2008 comprising principally costs involved in the Phase 2b clinical trial of Bicifadine until the Company announced that it had not met its trial’s endpoints and, therefore, it was terminated (November 2008).





The information below provides estimates regarding the costs associated with the current estimated range of the time that will be necessary to complete that development phase for rHuEPO for the treatment of MM. We also direct your attention to the risk factors which could significantly affect our ability to meet these cost and time estimates found in this report in Item 3 under the heading “Risk Factors-Risks Related to our Business.”





According to the clinical trial’s preliminary plan we received as part of the Bio-Gal transaction we are planning on performing a prospective, multi-center, double blind, placebo controlled, 50-patient phase 2 study intended to assess safety of rHuEPO when given to patients with advanced MM and demonstrate its effects on survival, biological markers related to the disease, immune improvements and quality of life. We intend to initiate the clinical trial/receive approval to commence such trial in 2011 and we expect it to last two-and-a-half years and its cost is estimated at 1-1.5 million US dollars. We have not yet submitted the preliminary plan, which may be updated, to the authorities and/or the applicable IRB.





While we have begun preliminary discussions with potential clinical sites and third party vendors for the planned study, we have not yet determined the final size and scope of the study, and as a result, we cannot certify the above estimations regarding the clinical trial period and cost to complete the study.





Under the terms of the license agreement, Presidio became responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to the DOS program. According to our knowledge, as of today, the DOS program compounds are still in preclinical development. The timing and results of pre-clinical studies are highly unpredictable. Due to the nature of pre-clinical studies and our inability to predict the results of such studies, we cannot estimate when such pre-clinical development will end.







54




The following table sets forth the research and development costs for the years 2008-2010 including all costs related to the legacy clinical-stage projects, our pre-clinical activities, and all other research and development programs. We did not carry any research and development activity and costs in 2009 due to the termination of the Bicifadine program, after the failure of the phase 2b clinical trial, in November 2008. We have started preparations for rHuEPO clinical development in the last quarter of 2010 (after the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction on August 2010). Whether or not and how quickly we complete development of our clinical stage projects is dependent on a variety of factors, including the rate at which we are able to engage clinical trial sites and the rate of enrollment of patients. As such, the costs associated with the development of our drug candidates may change significantly.
 
 For a further discussion of factors that may affect our research and development, see “Item 3. Risk Factors - Risks Related to Our Business,” and “Item 4. Information on the Company - Business Overview - Products Under Development” above.




Research and development Expenses in thousand US$Years ended December 31,2010


2009


2008rHuEPO


32



-



-Anti TNF (Yeda Option)


32



-



-Bicifadine


-



-



11,038DOS


-



-



684Total Research and development


64



-



11,722





Trend Information




Please see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” and “Item 4. Information on the Company” for trend information.


55


ITEM 6. DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES




Directors and Senior Management




The following sets forth information with respect to our directors and executive officers as of May 30, 2011.





Name

Age

PositionAmit Yonay

41

Chairman of the Board of DirectorsDafna Cohen

41

Non Executive and External DirectorJaron Diament

43

Non Executive and External DirectorMarc Allouche

37

Non Executive DirectorDavid Grossman

36

Executive Director and Chief Executive OfficerRonen Twito

36

Chief Financial OfficerMoshe Mittelman

56

Medical Director




Amit Yonay has served as a director in our company since March 2009. Since 2007, he has been actively involved in independent investments primarily in the real estate and capital markets with an emphasis toward distressed asset opportunities. Mr. Yonay had served from 2000 to January 2007, as the Head Israeli Sell-Side Analyst with ING Financial Markets (NYSE: ING, Euronext: INGA) in Israel. From 1998 until 2000, Mr. Yonay was Portfolio Manager at Meretz Investments Ltd. and from 1996 until 1998 he was a buy-side analyst at Meretz Investments. Mr. Yonay received a BSc in Electrical Engineering from Binghamton University and an MBA from Tel Aviv University in Finance and International Business.




Dafna Cohen has served as a director in our company since March 2009.  From 2010 she serves as director of Global Treasury at Mediamind Technologies (Nasdaq: MDMD), From 2005 to 2009 she served as Director of Investment and Treasurer of Emblaze Ltd. (LSE: BLZ). From 2000 to December 2004, Ms. Cohen was an Investment Manager for Leumi Partners., an investment house of the Bank Leumi Group. From 1994-2000, Ms. Cohen worked in the derivatives sector of Bank Leumi. In addition, Ms. Cohen serves as a director of Formula Systems Ltd (Nasdaq: FORTY, TASE: FORTY) since November 2009. Ms. Cohen serves as a director of Inventech Central (TASE: IVTC) since March 2011. Ms. Cohen received a BA in economics and political science and an MBA in finance and accounting from Hebrew University, Jerusalem.




Jaron Diament has served as a director in our company since March 2009. He has served as the founding partner and Chief Executive Officer of Tagor Capital Ltd., a public real estate investment company (TASE: TGCP), and a board member of all of its non-Israel real estate investments since December 2009. From September 2006 to December 2009, Mr. Diament served as Chief Financial Officer of Tagor Capital Ltd. and a board member of all of its non-Israel real estate investments. From 2003 to September 2006, Mr. Diament was an independent financial advisor focused on risk management and corporate finance transactions. From 1994 to February 2005 Mr. Diament was CFO of H.G.I.I. Ltd. (TASE: HGII, today a private company) and a member of the board of certain wholly owned subsidiaries. Prior to that Mr. Diament was an accountant with Eliezer Oren and Partners. In addition, Mr. Diament serves as an external director of Mega Or Holdings Ltd. (TASE: MGOR) since September 2007. Mr. Diament received a BA in economics and accounting from Tel Aviv University.




56




Marc Allouche has served as a director in our company since March 2009. He is currently an entrepreneur, investment banker and business advisor. He has founded and currently manages NFI Consulting which focuses on creating and advising investment and business opportunities mainly between Europe and Israel and this, notably within two asset classes: venture capital/private equity and real estate. Previously, he served as the head of the Alternative Investments Division of Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd., from 2008 to 2009, focusing on venture capital, private equity and real estate investments. From 2006 to 2007, Mr. Allouche served as Executive Vice President of investments and strategic development of SGPA Ltd., a French holding company and concurrently was CEO of one of its portfolio companies, operating in the retail sector in France, for turnaround purposes. From 2002 to 2005, Mr. Allouche launched and managed in Paris the Private Equity Advisory Group of Russel Bedford International, in charge of international corporate finance, transaction services and restructuring advisory services. From 2000 to 2001, Mr. Allouche served as Vice President at Nessuah Zannex Venture Capital Company Ltd., managing a life sciences venture capital fund, concurrently also Managing Director of one of its med-tech portfolio companies for turnaround purposes. In addition, from 1998 to 2000, Mr. Allouche was involved in the creation and the management of the Technology Group of KPMG International - Somekh Chaikin in Israel, a Corporate Finance division dedicated to high-tech and biotech companies. From 1996 to 1998, Mr. Allouche was a Senior Consultant at the Audit and the Transaction Services divisions of Price Waterhouse in Paris. Mr. Allouche received a BA in economics and a MBA with major in corporate finance and accounting from Dauphine University, Paris. He is also a Chartered Public Accountant in France.




David Grossman has served as a director in our company and as Chief Executive Officer of our company since February 2009. He served as a Vice President of Eurocom Investments LP, a private equity fund focused on long-term investments mainly in Israeli public companies, from March 2006 to December 2008.  Also from March 2006 to December 2008, Mr. Grossman was Vice President of Sahar Investments Ltd, (TASE: SAIN) which focused on investments in the Life Sciences arena.  From July 2003 to March 2006, Mr. Grossman was a Senior Analyst at Israel Health Care Ventures (IHCV), an Israeli healthcare venture capital fund. From 2001 to March 2003, Mr. Grossman was a senior investment banker with Reliance Capital Ltd. From 2001-2003, he was a partner of Magna Business Development, a consulting boutique. From January 2009 to April 2011, Mr. Grossman was a director and member of the audit committee of Bio Light Israeli Life Science Investments Ltd. (TASE: BOLT), and from May 2007 to July 2008 was a Director and member of the audit committee of Gilat Satcom Ltd. (AIM: GLT). Mr. Grossman received a BA business administration with a focus on information technology, from the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya.




Ronen Twito has served as Chief Financial Officer in our company since July 2009. Prior to joining XTL, he served as Corporate Finance Director at Leadcom Integrated Solutions Ltd., an international telecommunications company, specializing in management and implementation of network deployment services (listed on the AIM and TASE) from November 2004 to May 2009. Previously he served as an Audit Manager at Ernst & Young Israel from January 2000 to November 2004. Mr. Twito possesses over 10 years of finance experience in both publicly traded and private companies, which includes IPOs, dual listings, bonds placement, public fund raising, consolidated financial statement and M&As. Mr. Twito is an Israeli Certified Public Accountant and is a member of the Institute of CPAs in Israel. He holds a BSc in Business & Management – Accounting, and a B.Ed in Teaching of accounting, both from the Collman Management College.


57


Prof. Moshe Mittelman has served as the Medical Director of Multiple Myeloma at our company since August 2010. He is also a Hematology consultant and Director of the Department of Medicine at the Tel Aviv Sourasky (Ichilov) Medical Center, Israel. Since 1997, Moshe has been Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. A well-known hematologist focusing on cancer and erythropoietin (EPO) research, Prof. Mittelman was one of the first hematologists to apply rHuEPO in the clinical practice, which allowed him to make the pioneering observation of prolonged survival in multiple myeloma (MM) rHuEPO -treated patients . This led to extensive research both in the lab as well as with patients, showing hithertoo unrecognized immune effects to EPO. This research project has resulted in a series of scientific papers published in prestigious journals. Prof. Mittelman is also a well-known speaker in international conferences. Prof. Mittelman’s work led to the founding of Bio-Gal, Ltd. which has now merged with XTL. Prof. Mittelman has also served as President of the Israel Society of Internal Medicine, Secretary of the Israel Society of Hematology and a Hematology Consultant for the Israel Ministry of Health. Prof. Mittelman is also a consultant to various biotech companies. During the years 2008-2010, he has been a member of the national committee of the Health Basket in Israel. Since 2007, Prof. Mittelman serves as director in Gaon Holdings Ltd. (TASE: GAON), a public holding company.




Employment Agreements




We have an agreement dated January 18, 2010, which came into effect upon the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction, and effective as of January 1, 2010, with David Grossman, our Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Grossman is currently entitled to an annual base fee of NIS 480,000. Upon the successful completion of cash fund raising of at least US$ 10 million in equity on NASDAQ or any other recognized and approved stock exchange (the “Fund Raising”), Mr. Grossman's Annual fees shall be raised to NIS 580,000. In the event that the Company completes the Fund Raising and also Another Transaction (as defined below), then Mr. Grossman's annual fee shall be raised to NIS 630,000. (“Another Transaction” shall mean any business combination transaction, merger or acquisition, intellectual property licensing transaction or joint venture e.t.c.). In the event that we complete a Fund Raising within 24 months from the signing date, which is of a cash amount of more than US$3 million, Mr. Grossman shall be entitled to receive a one time bonus equal to 1% of the Fund Raising amount but not more than US$150,000. Mr. Grossman is also entitled to receive benefits comprised of managers' insurance as commonly acceptable for officer holders, and the use of a company car. There is a non-compete clause surviving one year after termination of employment. The agreement is not limited in time and may be terminated by either party on a four months prior written notice. In March 2010, our shareholders (after receiving the approval of the Board of Directors) approved the agreement and the granting of options to Mr. Grossman to purchase a total of 1,610,000 ordinary shares at an exercise price equal to NIS 0.075 per share. These options shall vest over a two-year period, with 33.33% having vested on the grant date, and the remaining 66.67% shall vest on a monthly basis, commencing from the effective date, over a period of 2 years thereafter for as long as Mr. Grossman's agreement with us is not terminated. Due to the fact that Mr. Grossman served as a CEO from February, 2009 without any consideration, Mr. Grossman was entitled to receive a one time signing payment of NIS 430,000. On 26 and 27 February 2011, the company's audit committee and board of directors approved, respectively, the company CEO's request and in accordance with the terms of the Agreement that they signed with him that the contractual arrangement of the CEO will be that of providing management services as an independent contractor and only if the financial consideration that will be paid to him does not exceed the cost to the company for his employment as an employee as stipulated above and that the company CEO undertakes to indemnify the company if an employer-employee relationship will be established between himself and the company.




58




We have an employment agreement dated July 29, 2009, and effective as of June 24, 2009, with Ronen Twito, our Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Twito is currently entitled to an annual base salary of NIS 456,000. Upon the successful completion of cash fund raising of at least US$ 10 million in equity on NASDAQ or any other recognized and approved stock exchange (the “Fund Raising”), Mr. Twito's Annual Salary shall be raised to NIS 550,000. In the event that the Company completes Fund Raising and also Another Transaction (as defined below), then Mr. Twito's annual salary shall be raised to NIS 600,000. (“Another Transaction” shall mean any business combination transaction, merger or acquisition, intellectual property licensing transaction or joint venture e.t.c.). In the event of a Fund Raising which is of a cash amount more than US$3 million but less than US$10 Million, Mr. Twito's annual salary shall be raised, after the first anniversary, to an amount based on a linear calculation of US$3 Million – US$10 Million applied to the annual salary increase of NIS 456,000 – NIS 550,000 (or in the event Another Transaction is achieved, NIS 600,000). In the event that we complete a Fund Raising of a cash amount of US $15 million, then Mr. Twito shall be entitled to a cash bonus in a NIS amount equal to US$ 200,000 In the event that the actual fundraising is of an amount of more than US$3 million but less than US $15 million, then Mr. Twito shall be entitled to a linear portion of the cash bonus calculated based on the actual fundraising between US$3 Million and US$15 Million. Within the second anniversary of Mr. Twito's employment, he will be entitled to receive bonus payments at the sole discretion of our Board of Directors. Mr. Twito is also entitled to receive benefits comprised of managers' insurance (pension and disability insurance), as commonly acceptable for officer holder, and the use of a company car. There is a non-compete clause surviving one year after termination of employment. The employment agreement may be terminated by either party on three months prior written notice. In July 2009, our Board of Directors granted options to Mr. Twito to purchase a total of 1,400,000 ordinary shares at an exercise price equal to NIS 0.075 per share. These options shall vest over a three-year period, with 33.33% having vested after 5 month from the agreement date, and the remaining 66.67% shall vest on a monthly basis, commencing from the effective date, over a period of 3 years thereafter for as long as Mr. Twito's employment with the Company is not terminated.




We have an agreement dated on July 12, 2010, and effective as of August 27, 2010, with Prof. Moshe Mittelman, our Medical Director. Prof. Mittelman is entitled to a monthly fee of US$ 2,500. His entitlement began 90 days after the date of completion of the Bio-Gal transaction, i.e., November 3, 2010. The agreement is limited to the date of successful completion of the phase 2 clinical trial on the rHuEPO. A “successful completion of the phase 2 clinical trial” is defined as: six (6) months after the trial of the rHuEPO on the last patient in accordance with trial protocol, or on an earlier date if XTL notifies Yeda of XTL’s desire to discontinue the trial. In August 2010, our Board of Directors approved the agreement as well as granting options to Prof. Mittelman to purchase a total of 640,000 ordinary shares at an exercise price of NIS 0.1 per share. These options shall vest over a twenty four-month period, on a monthly basis, commencing from August 27, 2010 as long as Prof. Mittelman’s agreement with us is not terminated. Also, upon the commencement of a Phase 2 clinical trial (first-in-man), 50% of Prof. Mittelman’s unvested options (until the date of the commencement of the trial) shall vest immediately. If Prof. Mittelman is terminated by XTL without cause, 25% of the unvested options (until the date of termination) shall vest immediately.




Compensation




The aggregate compensation paid by us and by our wholly-owned subsidiary to all persons who served as directors or officers for the year 2010 (8 persons, including 1 director who ceased to serve in the company during 2010) was approximately $0.4 million. This amount includes payments made for social security, pension, disability insurance and health insurance premiums of approximately $0.05 million, as well as severance accruals, payments made in lieu of statutory severance, payments for continuing education plans, payments made for the redemption of accrued vacation, and amounts expended by us for automobiles made available to our officers.See “Item 5.  Operating and Financial Review and Prospects – 2009 Restructuring”




59




All members of our Board of Directors who are not our employees are reimbursed for their expenses for each meeting attended.  Our directors who are not external directors as defined by the Israeli Companies Act are eligible to receive share options under our share option plans. Non-executive directors do not receive any remuneration from us other than their fees for services as members of the board, additional fees if they serve on committees of the board and expense reimbursement.




In March 2009, pursuant to a shareholders’ meeting, the monetary compensation was set for each of Mr. Grossman, Mr. Shweiger, Mr. Allouche, Mr. Yonay, Mr. Diament and Ms. Cohen as follows: annual consideration of $10,000 (to be paid in 4 equal quarterly payments), payments of $375 for attendance at each board or committee meeting in person or held by teleconference, $187.5 for unanimous board resolutions and reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. Mr. Grossman serves as the Company's CEO since February 11, 2009 and is entitled to a compensation package as detailed above in the Employment Agreements paragraph, and therefore will not be entitled to Directors fee.




We granted to three of our directors, Mr. Yonay, Mr. Shweiger and Mr. Allouche, 150,000 options each, to purchase our ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value, pursuant to the shareholder meeting of March 2, 2010, exercisable at an exercise price of NIS 0.298 (which is the average of the three-day closing price on TASE prior to the issuance). 33% of the said options are vested and 67% of said options shall vest and be exercisable on a monthly basis, commencing from March 2, 2010, for the duration of two years. On November 22, 2010, Mr. Shweiger ceased his directorship in the Company and therefore 63,747 of the total options granted to him were forfeited in accordance. Upon his departure, Mr. Shweiger exercised the vested 86,253 options.




In accordance with the requirements of Israeli Law, we determine our directors’ compensation in the following manner:




·
first, our compensation committee reviews the proposal for compensation.




·
second, provided that the compensation committee approves the proposed compensation, the proposal is then submitted to our Board of Directors for review, except that a director who is the beneficiary of the proposed compensation does not participate in any discussion or voting with respect to such proposal; and




·
finally, if our Board of Directors approves the proposal, it must then submit its recommendation to our shareholders, which is usually done in connection with our shareholders’ general meeting.




The approval of a majority of the shareholders voting at a duly convened shareholders meeting is required to implement any such compensation proposal.




60




Board practices




Election of Directors and Terms of Office




Our Board of Directors currently consists of five members, including our non-executive Chairman. Other than our two external directors, our directors are elected by an ordinary resolution at the annual general meeting of our shareholders. The nomination of our directors is proposed by a nomination committee of our Board of Directors, whose proposal is then approved by the board. The current members of the nomination committee are Amit Yonay (chairman of the nomination committee), Jaron Diament (chairman of the audit committee) and Dafna Cohen. Our board, following receipt of a proposal of the nomination committee, has the authority to add additional directors up to the maximum number of 12 directors allowed under our Articles. Such directors appointed by the board serve until the next annual general meeting of the shareholders. Unless they resign before the end of their term or are removed in accordance with our Articles, all of our directors, other than our external directors, will serve as directors until our next annual general meeting of shareholders. In March 2010, at an annual general meeting of our shareholders, Amit Yonay, Boaz Shweiger, March Allouche, and David Grossman were re-elected to serve as directors of our company. On November 22, 2010, Mr. Shweiger ceased his directorship in the Company. Dafna Cohen and Jaron Diament were elected to serve as external directors of our company at the March 2009 extraordinary general meeting. Dafna Cohen and Jaron Diament are serving as external directors pursuant to the provisions of the Israeli Companies Law for a three-year term ending in March 2012. After this date, their term of service may be renewed for an additional three-year term.




None of our directors or officers has any family relationship with any other director or officer.




Our Articles permit us to maintain directors' and officers’ liability insurance and to indemnify our directors and officers for actions performed on behalf of us, subject to specified limitations. We maintain a directors and officers insurance policy which covers the liability of our directors and officers as allowed under Israeli Companies Law.




External and Independent Directors




The Israeli Companies Law requires Israeli companies with shares that have been offered to the public either in or outside of Israel to appoint two external directors. No person may be appointed as an external director if that person or that person’s relative, partner, employer or any entity under the person’s control, has or had, on or within the two years preceding the date of that person's appointment to serve as an external director, any affiliation with the company or any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with the company. The term affiliation includes:




·
an employment relationship;




·
a business or professional relationship maintained on a regular basis;




·
control; and




·
service as an office holder, other than service as an officer for a period of not more than three months, during which the company first offered shares to the public.




No person may serve as an external director if that person’s position or business activities create, or may create, a conflict of interest with that person's responsibilities as an external director or may otherwise interfere with his/her ability to serve as an external director. If, at the time external directors are to be appointed, all current members of the Board of Directors are of the same gender, then at least one external director must be of the other gender. A director in one company shall not be appointed as an external director in another company if at that time a director of the other company serves as an external director in the first company. In addition, no person may be appointed as an external director if he/she is a member or employee of the Israeli Security Authority, and also not if he/she is a member of the Board of Directors or an employee of a stock exchange in Israel.




61




External directors are to be elected by a majority vote at a shareholders' meeting, provided that either:




·
the majority of shares voted at the meeting, including at least one-third of the shares held by non-controlling shareholders voted at the meeting, vote in favor of election of the director, with abstaining votes not being counted in this vote; or




·
the total number of shares held by non-controlling shareholders voted against the election of the director does not exceed one percent of the aggregate voting rights in the company.




The initial term of an external director is three years and may be extended for an additional three-year term. An external director may be removed only by the same percentage of shareholders as is required for their election, or by a court, and then only if such external director ceases to meet the statutory qualifications for their appointment or violates his or her duty of loyalty to the company. At least one external director must serve on every committee that is empowered to exercise one of the functions of the Board of Directors.




An external director is entitled to compensation as provided in regulations adopted under the Israeli Companies Law and is otherwise prohibited from receiving any other compensation, directly or indirectly, in connection with service provided as an external director.




Dafna Cohen and Jaron Diament serve as external directors pursuant to the provisions of the Israeli Companies Law. They both serve on our audit committee, our nomination committee and our compensation committee.




Audit Committee




The Israeli Companies Law requires public companies to appoint an audit committee. The responsibilities of the audit committee include identifying irregularities in the management of the company’s business and approving related party transactions as required by law. An audit committee must consist of at least three directors, including all of its external directors. The chairman of the Board of Directors, any director employed by or otherwise providing services to the company, and a controlling shareholder or any relative of a controlling shareholder, may not be a member of the audit committee. An audit committee may not approve an action or a transaction with a controlling shareholder, or with an office holder, unless at the time of approval two external directors are serving as members of the audit committee and at least one of the external directors was present at the meeting in which an approval was granted.




Our audit committee is currently comprised of three independent non-executive directors. The audit committee is chaired by Jaron Diament, who serves as the audit committee financial expert, with Dafna Cohen and Marc Allouche as members. The audit committee meets at least four times a year and monitors the adequacy of our internal controls, accounting policies and financial reporting. It regularly reviews the results of the ongoing risk self-assessment process, which we undertake, and our interim and annual reports prior to their submission for approval by the full Board of Directors. The audit committee oversees the activities of the internal auditor, sets its annual tasks and goals and reviews its reports. The audit committee reviews the objectivity and independence of the external auditors and also considers the scope of their work and fees.




We have adopted a written charter for our audit committee, setting forth its responsibilities as outlined by the regulations of the SEC. In addition, our audit committee has adopted procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints we may receive regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or auditing matters and the submission by our employees of concerns regarding questionable accounting or auditing matters.  In addition, SEC rules mandate that the audit committee of a listed issuer consist of at least three members, all of whom must be independent, as such term is defined by rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC. We are in compliance with the independence requirements of the SEC rules.




62




The Israeli Companies Law regulations require each public company to appoint a Balance Sheet Committee (the “Committee”) which shall be compounded from at least Three (3) members, of which the majority among them shall be independent directors and the Committee's Chairman shall be an external director. The Committee's duties are, among others, to examine the Company's Financial Statements and to recommend and report to the board of directors of the Company regarding any problem or defect found in such Financial Statements.





In addition to the above-said, all of Committee's members must apply with the following requirements:





·
All members shall be members of the board of directors of the Company.


·
At least one of the Committee's members shall have a Financial and Accounting expertise and the rest of the Committee's members must have the ability to read and understand Financial Statements.




The Company is in full compliance with the above-said requirements.




Approval of Compensation to Our Officers




The Israeli Companies Law prescribes that compensation to officers must be approved by a company’s Board of Directors.




Our compensation committee consists of three independent directors: Jaron Diament, Dafna Cohen and Marc Allouche. The responsibilities of the compensation committee are to set our overall policy on executive remuneration and to decide the specific remuneration, benefits and terms of employment for directors and the Chief Executive Officer.




The objectives of the compensation committee’s policies are that such individuals should receive compensation which is appropriate given their performance, level of responsibility and experience. Compensation packages should also allow us to attract and retain executives of the necessary caliber while, at the same time, motivating them to achieve the highest level of corporate performance in line with the best interests of shareholders. In order to determine the elements and level of remuneration appropriate to each executive director, the compensation committee reviews surveys on executive pay, obtains external professional advice and considers individual performance.




Internal Auditor




Under the Israeli Companies Law, the board of directors must appoint an internal auditor, nominated by the audit committee. The role of the internal auditor is to examine, among other matters, whether the company's actions comply with the law and orderly business procedure. Under the Israeli Companies Law, the internal auditor cannot be an office holder, an interested party or a relative of an office holder or interested party, and he or she may not be the company's independent accountant or its representative. We comply with the requirement of the Israeli Companies Law relating to internal auditors. Our internal auditors examine whether our various activities comply with the law and orderly business procedure.




63




Employees




As of May 30, 2011, we had three full-time employees/consultants (one of whom is an officer, which is engaged with the Company as a service provider). We and our Israeli employees are subject, by an extension order of the Israeli Ministry of Welfare, to a certain provisions of collective bargaining agreements between the Histadrut, the General Federation of Labor Unions in Israel and the Coordination Bureau of Economic Organizations, including the Industrialists Associations. These provisions principally address cost of living increases, recreation pay, travel expenses, vacation pay and other conditions of employment. We provide our employees with benefits and working conditions equal to or above the required minimum. Other than those provisions, our employees are not represented by a labor union. See also “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects - 2009 Restructuring” and “Item 6. Directors, Senior Management and Employees – Employment Agreements” above.




For the years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, the number of our employees/ engaged in the specified activities, by geographic location, are presented in the table below.




Year ended December 31,2010


2009


2008Research and DevelopmentIsrael


-



-



2US


-



-



--



-



2Financial and general managementIsrael


3



2



3US


-



-



33



2



6Total


3



2



8Average number of full-time employees


3



3



14




64





Share Ownership




The following table sets forth certain information as of April 30, 2011, regarding the beneficial ownership by our directors and executive officers. All numbers quoted in the table are inclusive of options to purchase shares that are exercisable within 60 days of May 30, 2010.




Amount and nature of beneficial ownershipOrdinary

shares

beneficially

owned

excluding

options


Options1

exercisable

within

60 days of

April 30,

2011


Total

ordinary

shares

beneficially

owned


Percent of

ordinary

shares

beneficially

ownedAmit YonayChairman of the Board


—



112,500
2


112,500



*Marc AlloucheDirector


—



112,500
2


112,500



*Dafna CohenDirector


—



—



—



—Jaron DiamentDirector


—



—



—



—David GrossmanDirector and Chief Executive Officer


—



1,296,944
3


1,296,944



*Ronen TwitoChief Financial Officer


—



1,088,889
4


1,088,889



*Moshe MittelmanMedical Director


5,590,896



266,667
5


5,857,563



2.8
%All directors and executive officers as a group (7 persons)


5,590,896



2,877,500



8,468,396



4.1
%


(1)
Options to purchase ordinary shares


(2)
112,500 options at an exercise price of NIS 0.298 per ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value, exercisable until March 1, 2020.


(3)
1,296,944 options at an exercise price of NIS 0.075 per ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value, exercisable until January 17, 2020.


(4)
1,088,889 options at an exercise price of NIS 0.075 per ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value, exercisable until June 23, 2019.


(5)
266,667 options at an exercise price of NIS 0.075 per ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value, exercisable until August 26, 2020.




*   Represents Less than 1% of ordinary shares outstanding.





Share Option Plans





We maintain the following share option plans for our and our subsidiary’s employees, directors and consultants. In addition to the discussion below, see Note 15b of our consolidated financial statements, included at “Item 18. Financial Statements.”




Our Board of Directors administers our share option plans and has the authority to designate all terms of the options granted under our plans including the grantees, exercise prices, grant dates, vesting schedules and expiration dates, which may be no more than ten years after the grant date. Options may not be granted with an exercise price of less than the fair market value of our ordinary shares on the date of grant, unless otherwise determined by our Board of Directors.




65




As of December 31, 2010, we have granted to employees, directors and consultants options that are outstanding to purchase up to 4,149,000 ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value, pursuant to four share option plans and pursuant to certain grants apart from these plans also discussed below under Non-Plan Share Options.




2001 Share Option Plan




Under a share option plan established in 2001, referred to as the 2001 Plan, we granted options during 2001-2010, at an exercise price between $ 0.0198 and $4.655 per ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value. Up to 2,200,000 option of NIS 0.1 par value were available to be granted under the 2001 Plan. On July 29, 2009, the option pool was increased by 5,000,000 unissued additional ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value, as well as forfeited and expired options that reverted to the pool due to departure of employees. As of December 31, 2010, 4,110,000 options are outstanding. Options granted to Israeli employees were in accordance with section 102 of the Tax Ordinance, under the capital gains option set out in section 102(b)(2) of the ordinance. The options are non-transferable.




The option term is for a period of ten years from the grant date. The options were granted for no consideration. The options vest over a three or two year period. As of December 31, 2010, 2,352,611 options of NIS 0.1 par value are fully vested. The remaining number of options of NIS 0.1 par value available for future grants under the 2001 Plan is 2,867,437.




Non-Plan Share Options




In addition to the options granted under our share option plans, there are 39,000 of NIS 0.1 par value outstanding and exercisable options, as of December 31, 2010, which were granted to consultants not under an option plan during 1997. The options were granted at an exercise price of $2.69.





ITEM 7. MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS




As of April 30, 2011, there were 10,052,081 ADRs outstanding, held by approximately 7 record holders, whose holdings represented approximately 9.85% of the total outstanding ordinary shares, of which 6 record holders were in the US.




The following table sets forth the number of our ordinary shares owned by any person known to us to be the beneficial owner of 5% or more of our ordinary shares as of May 30, 2011. The information in this table is based on 204,016,006 outstanding ordinary shares as of such date. The number of Ordinary Shares beneficially owned by a person includes Ordinary Shares subject to options held by that person that were currently exercisable. None of the holders of the Ordinary Shares listed in this table have voting rights different from other holders of the Ordinary Shares.




Name

Number of shares owned


Percent of ordinary sharesAlex Rabinovitch(1)(2)(3)


43,023,710



21.09
%David Bassa(2)


21,705,987



10.64
%Shalom Manova(2)


17,175,573



8.42
%




(1)
23,458,175 of our ordinary shares are held through Green Forest Ltd., which is best of our knowledge held jointly by Alex Rabinovitch and Sagit Rabinovitch.




(2)
Alex Rabinovitch, David Bassa and Shalom Manova hold our shares since August 3, 2010 as part of the completion of the Bio-Gal transaction.




(3)
In addition to his holding as stated in the table above, Mr. Alex Rabinovitch, through Green Forest Ltd., holds 191,250 warrants (series 1) and 573,750 warrants (series 2). Each warrant (series 1) is exercisable into one ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value from the date of registration for trade on the Tel-Aviv stock exchange (March 9, 2011) to November 27, 2011, at an exercise price equal to NIS 0.7 per share, linked to the US dollar. Each warrant (series 2) is exercisable into one ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value from the date of registration for trade on the Tel-Aviv stock exchange (March 9, 2011) to February 27, 2013, at an exercise price equal to NIS 1.0 per share, linked to the US dollar. On a fully diluted basis, assuming exercise of all outstanding warrants, the total holding shall represent 18.81% of the share capital of the Company,


66





Related Party Transactions




To our knowledge, there are no related party transactions existing as of May 30, 2010.





ITEM 8. FINANCIAL INFORMATION




Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information




Our audited consolidated financial statements are incorporated by reference into this annual report on Form 20-F.  See “Item 18. Financial Statements.”




Legal Proceedings




Neither we nor our subsidiaries are a party to, and our property is not the subject of, any material pending legal proceedings.




Dividend Distributions




We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our ordinary shares and do not anticipate paying any such cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Any future determination to pay dividends will be at the discretion of our Board of Directors. Cash dividends may be paid by an Israeli company only out of retained earnings as calculated under Israeli law.  We currently have no retained earnings and do not expect to have any retained earnings in the foreseeable future.





67




Significant Changes
  a.
On March 7, 2011, the Company raised by public issuance of 12,305,000 Ordinary shares of NIS 0.1 par value each, 6,152,500 warrants (series 1) and 18,457,500 warrants (series 2) on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange a net immediate amount of approximately $ 1.75 million (approximately NIS 6.3 million). Warrants (series 1) are exercisable into one Ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value from the date of registration for trade on the Stock Exchange (March 9, 2011) to November 27, 2011 at an exercise price equal to NIS 0.7 per share, linked to the US dollar. Warrants (series 2) are exercisable into one Ordinary share of NIS 0.1 par value from the date of registration for trade on the Stock Exchange (March 9, 2011) to February 27, 2013 at an exercise price equal to NIS 1.0 per share, linked to the US dollar.


b.
On March 22, 2011, the Company announced the expiration of 4,666,667 warrants (unregistered) which had been issued in 2006 under a private placement to American investors.





c.
On March 24, 2011, the Company has entered into a term sheet to acquire the assets of MinoGuard by an exclusive license to use MinoGuard’s entire technology in return for royalties on sales and milestone payments throughout the clinical development process, without any other payments.  MinoGuard was founded in 2007 in order to commercialize combination therapies for treating psychotic diseases, focusing on schizophrenia. The transaction is subject, among others, to completion of due diligence studies, examination of the regulatory track for the continued development of the drug and the approval of the Company’s Board of Directors.




ITEM 9. THE OFFER AND LISTING




Markets and Share Price History




Since July 12, 2005 our shares have been traded on Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) under the symbol “XTL”. As of April 17, 2009, when we were delisted from Nasdaq, then our primary trading market, our dual-listing provisions ceased and since then TASE has become our primary trading market for our securities, and our ADRs are quoted on the Pink Sheets under the symbol “XTLBY.PK”, with each ADR representing two NIS 0.1 par value ordinary shares.





On January 27, 2009, we received a Staff Determination Letter from The Nasdaq Stock Market notifying us that the staff of Nasdaq's Listing Qualifications Department determined, using its discretionary authority under Nasdaq Marketplace Rule 4300, that our ADRs would be delisted from Nasdaq. The letter further stated that Nasdaq would suspend trading on our ADRs at the opening of trading on February 5, 2009, unless we appealed Nasdaq's delisting determination. Nasdaq's determination to delist our ADRs was due to the fact we do not meet the stockholders' equity requirement, or any of its alternatives, and that we had failed to comply with Nasdaq's listing criteria. On February 3, 2009, we appealed the determination by the Nasdaq Listing Qualification Staff to delist our ADRs from the Nasdaq Capital Market. The Nasdaq Office of the General Counsel assigned a date of March 19, 2009, for an oral hearing before the Nasdaq Hearings Panel. Nasdaq’s delisting action has been stayed, pending a final written determination by the Panel following the hearing. At the hearing, we presented our opposition to Nasdaq's arguments and our business plan that among others enabled compliance with all other applicable Nasdaq listing requirements. In April 2009, we received a letter from the NASDAQ Stock Market informing us of their final decision to delist our ADRs from NASDAQ Capital Markets as of April 17, 2009, which has become final and unappealable as of July 2009.





Following the delisting in April 2009, our ADRs are quoted on the Pink Sheets under the symbol XTLBY.PK. Since September 1, 2005 until April 2009 our primary trading market was NASDAQ Capital Markets. Our ADRs have been traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol “XTLB,” with each ADR representing ten NIS 0.02 par value ordinary shares (prior to the 1:5 share consolidation, which was resolved on March 18, 2009, and effected in June 2009).





In the past, our primary trading market was the London Stock Exchange, or LSE, where our shares were listed and traded under the symbol “XTL” since our initial public offering in September of 2000.  On October 31, 2007, our ordinary shares were delisted from the LSE, pursuant to the October 2, 2007 vote at our extraordinary general meeting of shareholders.




68




American Depositary Shares
  The following table presents, for the periods indicated, the high and low market prices for our ADRs as reported on the NASDAQ Stock Market1 since September 1, 2005 and on the Pink Sheets since April 17, 2009, the date on which our ADRs were initially quoted. Prior to the initial quotation of our ADRs on the NASDAQ Stock Market on September 1, 2005, our ADRs were not traded in any organized market and were not liquid.




US DollarHigh


LowLast Six Calendar MonthsMay 2011 (until May 29)

0.38


0.28April 2011

0.38


0.22March 2011


0.44



0.23February 2011


0.45



0.28January 2011


0.54



0.32December 2010


0.48



0.23November 2010


0.26



0.12Financial Quarters During the Past Two Full Fiscal YearsSecond Quarter of 2011 (until May 29)


0.38



0.22First Quarter of 2011


0.54



0.23Fourth Quarter of 2010


0.48



0.12Third Quarter of 2010


0.28



0.07Second Quarter of 2010


0.13



0.06First Quarter of 2010


0.15



0.09Fourth Quarter of 2009


0.18



0.09Third Quarter of 2009


0.22



0.14Second Quarter of 2009


0.32



0.05First Quarter of 2009


0.20



0.05Full Five Financial Years2010


0.48



0.062009


0.32



0.052008


4.96



0.042007


4.99



1.102006


8.17



2.00








1Our ADRs are quoted on the Pink Sheets since April 17, 2009. Our ADRs were quoted on the NASDAQ Capital Market since December 3, 2007 until April 17, 2009 and prior to that were quoted on the NASDAQ Global Market.




The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the high and low sales prices of the NIS 0.1 par value ordinary shares (after the 1:5 share consolidation which was resolved on June 22, 2009) on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.  For comparative purposes only, we have also provided such figures translated into US Dollars at an exchange rate of 3.472 New Israeli Shekel per US Dollar, as of May 29, 2011, according to the Bank of Israel.




New Israeli Shekel


US DollarHigh


Low


High


LowLast Six Calendar MonthsMay 2011 (until May 29)

0.660


0.513


0.190


0.148April 2011

0.670


0.543


0.193


0.156March 2011


0.670



0.400



0.193



0.115February 2011


0.677



0.482



0.195



0.139January 2011


0.987



0.530



0.284



0.153December 2010


0.700



0.380



0.202



0.109November 2010


0.420



0.335



0.121



0.096Financial Quarters During the Past Two Full Fiscal YearsSecond Quarter of 2011 (until May 29)


0.670



0.513



0.193



0.148First Quarter of 2011


0.987



0.400



0.284



0.115Fourth Quarter of 2010


0.700



0.335



0.202



0.096Third Quarter of 2010


0.415



0.225



0.120



0.065Second Quarter of 2010


0.318



0.162



0.092



0.047First Quarter of 2010


0.407



0.275



0.117



0.079Fourth Quarter of 2009


0.468



0.262



0.135



0.075Third Quarter of 2009


0.597



0.392



0.172



0.113Second Quarter of 2009


1.285



0.200



0.370



0.058First Quarter of 2009


0.345



0.095



0.099



0.027Full Financial Years Since 20062010


0.700



0.162



0.202



0.0472009


1.285



0.095



0.370



0.0272008


8.700



0.075



2.506



0.0222007


10.20



2.275



2.938



0.6552006


18.50



4.645



5.328



1.335


2 On June 22, 2009 a 1:5 share consolidation was resolved. All figures prior to the effective date were adjusted accordingly.


69





ITEM 10. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION




Memorandum and Articles of Association




Objects and Purposes of the Company




Pursuant to Part B, Section 3 of our Articles of Association, we may undertake any lawful activity.




Powers and Obligations of the Directors




Pursuant to the Israeli Companies Law and our Articles of Association, a director is not permitted to vote on a proposal, arrangement or contract in which he or she has a personal interest. Also, the directors may not vote on compensation to themselves or any members of their body, as that term is defined under Israeli law, without the approval of our audit committee and our shareholders at a general meeting. The requirements for approval of certain transactions are set forth below in “Item 10. Additional Information – Memorandum and Articles of Association–Approval of Certain Transactions.” The power of our directors to enter into borrowing arrangements on our behalf is limited to the same extent as any other transaction by us.




The Israeli Companies Law codifies the fiduciary duties that office holders, including directors and executive officers, owe to a company. An office holder’s fiduciary duties consist of a duty of care and a duty of loyalty. The duty of care generally requires an office holder to act with the same level of care as a reasonable office holder in the same position would employ under the same circumstances. The duty of loyalty includes avoiding any conflict of interest between the office holder’s position in the company and such person’s personal affairs, avoiding any competition with the company, avoiding exploiting any corporate opportunity of the company in order to receive personal advantage for such person or others, and revealing to the company any information or documents relating to the company’s affairs which the office holder has received due to his or her position as an office holder.





Indemnification of Directors and Officers; Limitations on Liability





Israeli law permits a company to insure an office holder in respect of liabilities incurred by him or her as a result of an act or omission in the capacity of an office holder for:





·
a breach of the office holder’s duty of care to the company or to another person;




·
a breach of the office holder’s fiduciary duty to the company, provided that he or she acted in good faith and had reasonable cause to believe that the act would not prejudice the company; and




·
a financial liability imposed upon the office holder in favor of another person.




70





Moreover, a company can indemnify an office holder for any of the following obligations or expenses incurred in connection with the acts or omissions of such person in his or her capacity as an office holder:





·
monetary liability imposed upon him or her in favor of a third party by a judgment, including a settlement or an arbitral award confirmed by the court; and




·
reasonable litigation expenses, including attorneys’ fees, actually incurred by the office holder or imposed upon him or her by a court, in a proceeding brought against him or her by or on behalf of the company or by a third party, or in a criminal action in which he or she was acquitted, or in a criminal action which does not require criminal intent in which he or she was convicted; furthermore, a company can, with a limited exception, exculpate an office holder in advance, in whole or in part, from liability for damages sustained by a breach of duty of care to the company.




Our Articles of Association allow for insurance, exculpation and indemnification of office holders to the fullest extent permitted by law. We have entered into indemnification, insurance and exculpation agreements with our directors and executive officers, following shareholder approval of these agreements. We have directors’ and officers’ liability insurance covering our officers and directors for a claim imposed upon them as a result of an action carried out while serving as an officer or director, for (a) the breach of duty of care towards us or towards another person, (b) the breach of fiduciary duty towards us, provided that the officer or director acted in good faith and had reasonable grounds to assume that the action would not harm our interests, and (c) a monetary liability imposed upon him in favor of a third party.




Approval of Certain Transactions




The Israeli Companies Law codifies the fiduciary duties that office holders, including directors and executive officers, owe to a company. An office holder, as defined in the Israeli Companies Law, is a director, general manager, chief business manager, deputy general manager, vice general manager, executive vice president, vice president, other manager directly subordinate to the managing director or any other person assuming the responsibilities of any of the foregoing positions without regard to such person's title. An office holder's fiduciary duties consist of a duty of care and a duty of loyalty. The duty of loyalty includes avoiding any conflict of interest between the office holder's position in the company and his personal affairs, avoiding any competition with the company, avoiding exploiting any business opportunity of the company in order to receive personal advantage for himself or others, and revealing to the company any information or documents relating to the company's affairs which the office holder has received due to his position as an office holder. Each person listed in the table under “Directors and Senior Management,” which is displayed under “Item 6. Directors, Senior Management and Employees – Directors and Senior Management,” holds such office in our Company. Under the Israeli Companies Law, all arrangements as to compensation of office holders who are not directors require approval of the Board of Directors, or a committee thereof. Arrangements regarding the compensation of directors also require audit committee and shareholders approval, with the exception of compensation to external directors in the amounts specified in the regulations discussed in “Item 6. Directors, Senior Management and Employees – Directors and Senior Management – Compensation.”




The Israeli Companies Law requires that an office holder promptly discloses any personal interest that he or she may have, and all related material information known to him or her, in connection with any existing or proposed transaction by the company. The disclosure must be made to our Board of Directors or shareholders without delay and prior to the meeting at which the transaction is to be discussed. In addition, if the transaction is an extraordinary transaction, as defined under the Israeli Companies Law, the office holder must also disclose any personal interest held by the office holder's spouse, siblings, parents, grandparents, descendants, spouse's descendants and the spouses of any of the foregoing, or by any corporation in which the office holder is a 5% or greater shareholder, or holder of 5% or more of the voting power, director or general manager or in which he or she has the right to appoint at least one director or the general manager. An extraordinary transaction is defined as a transaction not in the ordinary course of business, not on market terms, or that is likely to have a material impact on the company's profitability, assets or liabilities.


71




In the case of a transaction which is not an extraordinary transaction (other than transactions relating to a director’s conditions of service), after the office holder complies with the above disclosure requirement, only board approval is required unless the Articles of Association of the company provides otherwise. The transaction must not be adverse to the company's interest. If the transaction is an extraordinary transaction, then, in addition to any approval required by the Articles of Association, the transaction must also be approved by the audit committee and by the Board of Directors, and under specified circumstances, by a meeting of the shareholders. An office holder who has a personal interest in a matter that is considered at a meeting of the Board of Directors or the audit committee may not be present at this meeting or vote on this matter.




The Israeli Companies Law applies the same disclosure requirements to a controlling shareholder of a public company, which is defined as a shareholder who has the ability to direct the activities of a company, other than in circumstances where this power derives solely from the shareholder’s position on the Board or any other position with the company, and includes a shareholder that holds 25% or more of the voting rights if no other shareholder owns more than 50% of the voting rights in the company. Extraordinary transactions with a controlling shareholder or in which a controlling shareholder has a personal interest, and the terms of compensation of a controlling shareholder who is an office holder, require the approval of the audit committee, the Board of Directors and the shareholders of the company. The shareholders’ approval must either include at least the majority of the disinterested shareholders who are present, in person or by proxy, at the meeting, or, alternatively, the total shareholdings of the disinterested shareholders who vote against the transaction must not represent more than two percent of the voting rights in the company.




In addition, a private placement of securities that will increase the relative holdings of a shareholder that holds 5% or more of the company’s outstanding share capital, assuming the exercise by such person of all of the convertible securities into shares held by that person, or that will cause any person to become a holder of more than 5% of the company’s outstanding share capital, requires approval by the Board of Directors and the shareholders of the company. However, subject to certain exceptions under regulations adopted under the Israeli Companies Law, shareholder approval will not be required if the aggregate number of shares issued pursuant to such private placement, assuming the exercise of all of the convertible securities into shares being sold in such a private placement, comprises less than 20% of the voting rights in a company prior to the consummation of the private placement.




Under the Israeli Companies Law, a shareholder has a duty to act in good faith towards the company and other shareholders and refrain from abusing his power in the company, including, among other things, voting in the general meeting of shareholders on the following matters:




·
any amendment to the Articles of Association;




·
an increase of the company's authorized share capital;




·
a merger; and




·
approval of interested party transactions that require shareholders approval.




In addition, any controlling shareholder, any shareholder who knows it can determine the outcome of a shareholders vote and any shareholder who, under a company’s Articles of Association, can appoint or prevent the appointment of an office holder, is under a duty to act with fairness towards the company. The Israeli Companies Law does not describe the substance of this duty. The Israeli Companies Law requires that specified types of transactions, actions and arrangements be approved as provided for in a company’s articles of association and in some circumstances by the audit committee, by the Board of Directors and by the shareholders. In general, the vote required by the audit committee and the Board of Directors for approval of these matters, in each case, is a majority of the disinterested directors participating in a duly convened meeting.




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Rights Attached to Ordinary Shares




Through March 18, 2009, our authorized share capital is NIS 10,000,000 consisting of 500,000,000 ordinary shares, par value NIS 0.02 per share. On March 18, 2009, pursuant to a vote at the recent shareholder’s meeting, the share capital of our company was consolidated and re-divided so that each five (5) shares of NIS 0.02 nominal value was consolidated into one (1) share of NIS 0.1 nominal value so that following such consolidation and re-division, our authorized share capital consists of 100,000,000 ordinary shares, par value NIS 0.10 per share.  In addition, the authorized share capital of our company was increased from NIS 10,000,000 to NIS 70,000,000 divided into 700,000,000 ordinary shares, NIS 0.10 nominal value.  The share consolidation was effected in June 2009.




Holders of ordinary shares have one vote per share, and are entitled to participate equally in the payment of dividends and share distributions and, in the event of our liquidation, in the distribution of assets after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors. No preferred shares are currently authorized. All outstanding ordinary shares are validly issued and fully paid.




Transfer of Shares




Fully paid ordinary shares are issued in registered form and may be freely transferred under our Articles of Association unless the transfer is restricted or prohibited by another instrument or applicable securities laws.




Dividend and Liquidation Rights




We may declare a dividend to be paid to the holders of ordinary shares according to their rights and interests in our profits. In the event of our liquidation, after satisfaction of liabilities to creditors, our assets will be distributed to the holders of ordinary shares in proportion to the nominal value of their holdings.




This right may be affected by the grant of preferential dividend or distribution rights, to the holders of a class of shares with preferential rights that may be authorized in the future. Under the Israeli Companies Law, the declaration of a dividend does not require the approval of the shareholders of the company, unless the company's articles of association require otherwise. Our Articles provide that the Board of Directors may declare and distribute dividends without the approval of the shareholders.




Annual and Extraordinary General Meetings




We must hold our annual general meeting of shareholders each year no later than 15 months from the last annual meeting, at a time and place determined by the Board of Directors, upon at least 21 days’ prior notice to our shareholders to which we need to add additional three days for notices sent outside of Israel. A special meeting may be convened by request of two directors, 25% of the directors then in office, one or more shareholders holding at least 5% of our issued share capital and at least 1% of our issued voting rights, or one or more shareholders holding at least 5% of our issued voting rights. Notice of a general meeting must set forth the date, time and place of the meeting. Such notice must be given at least 21 days but not more than 45 days prior to the general meeting. The quorum required for a meeting of shareholders consists of at least two shareholders present in person or by proxy who holds or represent between them at least one-third of the voting rights in the company. A meeting adjourned for lack of a quorum generally is adjourned to the same day in the following week at the same time and place (with no need for any notice to the shareholders) or until such other later time if such time is specified in the original notice convening the general meeting, or if we serve notice to the shareholders no less than seven days before the date fixed for the adjourned meeting. If at an adjourned meeting there is no quorum present half an hour after the time set for the meeting, any number participating in the meeting shall represent a quorum and shall be entitled to discuss the matters set down on the agenda for the original meeting. All shareholders who are registered in our registrar on the record date, or who will provide us with proof  of ownership on that date as applicable to the relevant registered shareholder, are entitled to participate in a general meeting and may vote as described in “Voting Rights” and “Voting by Proxy and in Other Manners,” below.




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Voting Rights




Our ordinary shares do not have cumulative voting rights in the election of directors. As a result, the holders of ordinary shares that represent more than 50% of the voting power represented at a shareholders meeting in which a quorum is present have the power to elect all of our directors, except the external directors whose election requires a special majority as described under the section entitled “Item 6. Directors, Senior Management and Employees – Board Practices – External and Independent Directors.”




Holders of ordinary shares have one vote for each ordinary share held on all matters submitted to a vote of shareholders. Shareholders may vote in person or by proxy. These voting rights may be affected by the grant of any special voting rights to the holders of a class of shares with preferential rights that may be authorized in the future.




Under the Israeli Companies Law, unless otherwise provided in the Articles of Association or by applicable law, all resolutions of the shareholders require a simple majority.  Our Articles of Association provide that all decisions may be made by a simple majority. See “–Approval of Certain Transactions” above for certain duties of shareholders towards the company.




Voting by Proxy and in Other Manners




Our Articles of Association enable a shareholder to appoint a proxy, who need not be a shareholder, to vote at any shareholders meeting. We require that the appointment of a proxy be in writing signed by the person making the appointment or by an attorney authorized for this purpose, and if the person making the appointment is a corporation, by a person or persons authorized to bind the corporation. In the document appointing a proxy, each shareholder may specify how the proxy should vote on any matter presented at a shareholders meeting. The document appointing the proxy shall be deposited in our offices or at such other address as shall be specified in the notice of the meeting not less than 48 hours before the time of the meeting at which the person specified in the appointment is due to vote.




The Israeli Companies Law and our Articles of Association do not permit resolutions of the shareholders to be adopted by way of written consent, for as long as our ordinary shares are publicly traded.




Limitations on the Rights to Own Securities




The ownership or voting of ordinary shares by non-residents of Israel is not restricted in any way by our Articles of Association or the laws of the State of Israel, except that nationals of countries which are, or have been, in a state of war with Israel may not be recognized as owners of ordinary shares.




Anti-Takeover Provisions under Israeli Law




The Israeli Companies Law permits merger transactions with the approval of each party’s board of directors and shareholders. In accordance with the Israeli Companies Law, a merger may be approved at a shareholders meeting by a majority of the voting power represented at the meeting, in person or by proxy, and voting on that resolution. In determining whether the required majority has approved the merger, shares held by the other party to the merger, any person holding at least 25% of the outstanding voting shares or means of appointing the board of directors of the other party to the merger, or the relatives or companies controlled by these persons, are excluded from the vote.




Under the Israeli Companies Law, a merging company must inform its creditors of the proposed merger. Any creditor of a party to the merger may seek a court order blocking the merger, if there is a reasonable concern that the surviving company will not be able to satisfy all of the obligations of the parties to the merger. Moreover, a merger may not be completed until at least 30 days have passed from the time the merger was approved in a general meeting of each of the merging companies, and at least 50 days have passed from the time that a merger proposal was filed with the Israeli Registrar of Companies.




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Israeli corporate law provides that an acquisition of shares in a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if, as a result of such acquisition, the purchaser would become a 25% or greater shareholder of the company. This rule does not apply if there is already another shareholder with 25% or greater shares in the company. Similarly, Israeli corporate law provides that an acquisition of shares in a public company must be made by means of a tender offer if, as a result of the acquisition, the purchaser's shareholdings would entitle the purchaser to over 45% of the shares in the company, unless there is a shareholder with 45% or more of the shares in the company. These requirements do not apply if, in general, the acquisition (1) was made in a private placement that received the approval of the company’s shareholders; (2) was from a 25% or greater shareholder of the company which resulted in the purchaser becoming a 25% or greater shareholder of the company, or (3) was from a 45% or greater shareholder of the company which resulted in the acquirer becoming a 45% or greater shareholder of the company. These rules do not apply if the acquisition is made by way of a merger. Regulations promulgated under the Israeli Companies Law provide that these tender offer requirements do not apply to companies whose shares are listed for trading external of Israel if, according to the law in the country in which the shares are traded, including the rules and regulations of the stock exchange or which the shares are traded, either:




·
there is a limitation on acquisition of any level of control of the company; or




·
the acquisition of any level of control requires the purchaser to do so by means of a  tender offer to the public.




The Israeli Companies Law provides specific rules and procedures for the acquisition of shares held by minority shareholders, if the majority shareholder holds more than 90% of the outstanding shares. If, as a result of an acquisition of shares, the purchaser will hold more than 90% of a company’s outstanding shares, the acquisition must be made by means of a tender offer for all of the outstanding shares. If less than 5% of the outstanding shares are not tendered in the tender offer, all the shares that the purchaser offered to purchase will be transferred to it. The Israeli Companies Law provides for appraisal rights if any shareholder files a request in court within three months following the consummation of a full tender offer. If more than 5% of the outstanding shares are not tendered in the tender offer, then the purchaser may not acquire shares in the tender offer that will cause his shareholding to exceed 90% of the outstanding shares of the company. Israeli tax law treats specified acquisitions, including a stock-for-stock swap between an Israeli company and a foreign company, less favorably than does US tax law. These laws may have the effect of delaying or deterring a change in control of us, thereby limiting the opportunity for shareholders to receive a premium for their shares and possibly affecting the price that some investors are willing to pay for our securities.




Rights of Shareholders




Under the Israeli Companies Law, our shareholders have the right to inspect certain documents and registers including the minutes of general meetings, the register of shareholders and the register of substantial shareholders, any document held by us that relates to an act or transaction requiring the consent of the general meeting as stated above under “-Approval of Certain Transactions,” our Articles of Association and our financial statements, and any other document which we are required to file under the Israeli Companies Law or under any law with the Registrar of Companies or the Israeli Securities Authority, and is available for public inspection at the Registrar of Companies or the Securities Authority, as the case may be.




If the document required for inspection by one of our shareholders relates to an act or transaction requiring the consent of the general meeting as stated above, we may refuse the request of the shareholder if in our opinion the request was not made in good faith, the documents requested contain a commercial secret or a patent, or disclosure of the documents could prejudice our good in some other way.







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Enforceability of Civil Liabilities




We are incorporated in Israel and most of our directors and officers and the Israeli experts named in this report reside outside the US. Service of process upon them may be difficult to effect within the US.  Furthermore, because substantially all of our assets, and those of our non-US directors and officers and the Israeli experts named herein, are located outside the US, any judgment obtained in the US against us or any of these persons may not be collectible within the US.




We have been informed by our legal counsel in Israel, Kantor & Co., that there is doubt as to the enforceability of civil liabilities under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, pursuant to original actions instituted in Israel. However, subject to particular time limitations, executory judgments of a US court for monetary damages in civil matters may be enforced by an Israeli court, provided that:




·
the judgment was obtained after due process before a court of competent jurisdiction, that recognizes and enforces similar judgments of Israeli courts, and the court had authority according to the rules of private international law currently prevailing in Israel;




·
adequate service of process was effected and the defendant had a reasonable opportunity to be heard;




·
the judgment is not contrary to the law, public policy, security or sovereignty of the State of Israel and its enforcement is not contrary to the laws governing enforcement of judgments;




·
the judgment was not obtained by fraud and does not conflict with any other valid judgment in the same matter between the same parties;




·
the judgment is no longer appealable; and




·
an action between the same parties in the same matter is not pending in any Israeli court at the time the lawsuit is instituted in the foreign court.




We have irrevocably appointed XTL Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., our US subsidiary, as our agent to receive service of process in any action against us in any US federal court or the courts of the State of New York.




Foreign judgments enforced by Israeli courts generally will be payable in Israeli currency. The usual practice in an action before an Israeli court to recover an amount in a non-Israeli currency is for the Israeli court to render judgment for the equivalent amount in Israeli currency at the rate of exchange in force on the date of the judgment. Under existing Israeli law, a foreign judgment payable in foreign currency may be paid in Israeli currency at the rate of exchange for the foreign currency published on the day before date of payment. Current Israeli exchange control regulations also permit a judgment debtor to make payment in foreign currency. Pending collection, the amount of the judgment of an Israeli court stated in Israeli currency ordinarily may be linked to Israel’s consumer price index plus interest at the annual statutory rate set by Israeli regulations prevailing at that time. Judgment creditors must bear the risk of unfavorable exchange rates.


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Material Contracts




VivoQuest Inc.





In August 2005, we entered into an asset purchase agreement with VivoQuest, a privately held biotechnology company based in the US, pursuant to which we agreed to purchase from VivoQuest certain assets, including VivoQuest’s laboratory equipment, and to assume VivoQuest’s lease of its laboratory space. In consideration, we paid $450,000 to VivoQuest, which payment was satisfied by the issuance of ordinary shares having a fair market value in the same amount as of the closing date.  The asset purchase was completed in September 2005.  In addition, we entered into a license agreement with VivoQuest pursuant to which we acquired exclusive worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable and non-terminable rights to VivoQuest’s patents, intellectual property and technology.  The license covers a proprietary compound library, including VivoQuest’s lead HCV compounds, that was developed through the use of Diversity Oriented Synthesis, or DOS, technology. The terms of the license agreement include an initial upfront license fee of approximately $941,000 that was paid in our ordinary shares.  The license agreement also provides for additional milestone payments triggered by certain regulatory and sales targets.  The milestone payments amount to an aggregate of $34 million, $25 million of which will be due upon or following regulatory approval or actual product sales, and are payable in cash or ordinary shares at our election.  In addition, the license agreement requires that we make royalty payments in the range of 2% to 8%, depending on net product sales.  Commercialization of the DOS program has been out-licensed to Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (see “Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.” below).




Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.





In March 2008, and as revised August 2008, we signed an agreement to out-license the DOS program to Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., or Presidio, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, in-licensing, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for viral infections, including HIV and HCV. Under the terms of the license agreement, as revised, Presidio was granted a license for patent rights and technology relating to the DOS program, and became responsible for all further development and commercialization activities and costs relating to our DOS program.  In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, we received a $5.94 million, non-refundable, upfront payment in cash from Presidio and are eligible to receive up to an additional aggregate amount of $59 million upon reaching certain development and commercialization milestones.  In addition, we will receive a royalty payment in the range of 1% to 10% on direct product sales by Presidio, and a percentage of Presidio’s income if the DOS program is sublicensed by Presidio to a third party.  Presidio is responsible for all further development and commercialization activities relating to the DOS program and, to our knowledge based upon the most current reports we have received from Presidio, no commercial sales have begun. The license remains in effect until the expiration of all of Presidio’s payment obligations, including milestone and royalty payments.  Presidio’s royalty obligations continue until a certain number of years from the first commercial sale in such country or until the expiration date of the last to expire of the licensed patents (currently, 2023), whichever is later. Upon expiration of the agreement, on a licensed product-by-product and country-by-country basis, the license granted to Presidio shall convert to a non-exclusive, perpetual, fully paid-up, non-royalty-bearing license.  Presidio may terminate the license agreement at any time upon ninety days written notice to us, after which Presidio must return the licensed intellectual property to us and cease development and commercialization for a period of ten years.




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Bio-Gal Ltd.




On March 18, 2009, we announced that we had entered into an asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal Ltd. (“Bio-Gal”), a Gibraltar private company, for the rights to a use patent on Recombinant Erythropoietin (“rHuEPO”) for the prolongation of multiple myeloma patients’ survival and improvement of their quality of life. On December 31, 2009, we amended the asset purchase agreement with Bio-Gal, so that XTL could acquire XTEPO Ltd., a special purpose company that was established by Bio-Gal’s shareholders who received from Bio-Gal all of Bio-Gal’s rights on rHuEPO and raised approximately $1.5 million. We intend to develop rHuEPO for the prolongation of MM patients’ survival and improvement of their quality of life. MM is a severe and incurable malignant hematological cancer of plasma cells. In accordance with the terms of the amended asset purchase agreement, we issued to XTEPO’s shareholders ordinary shares representing approximately 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital. In addition, the parties agreed to cancel a $10 million cash milestone payment to Bio-Gal upon the successful completion of a Phase 2 clinical trial, which was under the original asset purchase agreement.  We are obligated to pay 1% royalties on net sales of the product, as well as a fixed royalty payment in the total amount of $350,000 upon the successful completion of Phase 2. Such payment of $350,000 mentioned above shall be made to Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd. (“Yeda”) upon the earlier of (i) six months from the Successful Completion of Phase 2 or (ii) the completion of a successful fundraising by XTL or XTEPO at any time after the completion of the Phase 2 of an amount of minimum $2 million. On August 3, 2010, the Bio-Gal transaction was completed according to the outline signed by the parties to the agreement on December 31, 2009, after all the prerequisites had been met, including, among other things, the signing of an agreement with the Israeli Tax Authority regarding the tax exemption granted to the share swap transaction pursuant to article 104 and 103 to the Israeli tax ordinance (Revised), 1961. (See notes 1b and 9a to the consolidated financial statements: General, Intangible Asset).




Bicifadine License




In November 2008, we announced that the Phase 2b clinical trial failed to meet its primary and secondary endpoints, and as a result we ceased development of Bicifadine for diabetic neuropathic pain in 2008. In January 2007, XTL Development had signed an agreement with DOV to in-license the worldwide rights for Bicifadine. XTL Development was developing Bicifadine for the treatment of diabetic neuropathic pain. In accordance with the terms of the license agreement, XTL Development paid an initial up-front license fee of $7.5 million in cash in 2007. In addition, XTL Development would have been required to make milestone payments of up to $126.5 million over the life of the license. These milestone payments would have been made in either cash and/or our ordinary shares, at our election, with the exception of $5 million in cash, due upon or after regulatory approval of the product. XTL Development was also obligated to pay royalties to DOV on net sales of Bicifadine. Following our announcement of the failure of the phase 2b clinical trial, we ceased development of Bicifadine for diabetic neuropathic pain in 2008 and all rights under the agreement reverted to DOV. Since the failure of the Bicifadine phase 2b clinical trial, both XTL Development and DOV ceased the prosecution and maintenance of those patents relating to Bicifadine. In March 2010, the agreement was formally terminated.




In addition, XTL Development was committed to pay a transaction advisory fee to certain third party intermediaries in connection with the in-license of Bicifadine from DOV. Once the Bicifadine license agreement was terminated, the commitment to pay a further transaction advisory fee ceased. In March 2010, we formally terminated the license agreement and therefore all unvested SARs have automatically expired. See “Item 5 – Operating and Financial Review and Prospects – Obligations and Commitments.”




Exchange Controls





Under Israeli Law, Israeli non-residents who purchase ordinary shares with certain non-Israeli currencies (including dollars) may freely repatriate in such non-Israeli currencies all amounts received in Israeli currency in respect of the ordinary shares, whether as a dividend, as a liquidating distribution, or as proceeds from any sale in Israel of the ordinary shares, provided in each case that any applicable Israeli income tax is paid or withheld on such amounts. The conversion into the non-Israeli currency must be made at the rate of exchange prevailing at the time of conversion.




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Taxation




We issued XTEPO’s shareholders ordinary shares representing approximately 69.44% of our then issued and outstanding ordinary share capital as part of the Bio-Gal transaction (see also Israeli Tax Considerations below). As a result of the shifts of ownership, the Company’s US carry back losses will be subject to significant certain limitations. See “Item 3. Key Information – Risks Related to our Financial Condition.”




The following discussion of Israeli and US tax consequences material to our shareholders is not intended and should not be construed as legal or professional tax advice and does not exhaust all possible tax considerations. To the extent that the discussion is based on new tax legislation, which has not been subject to judicial or administrative interpretation, the views expressed in the discussion might not be accepted by the tax authorities in question. This summary does not purport to be a complete analysis of all potential tax consequences of owning ordinary shares or ADRs. In particular, this discussion does not take into account the specific circumstances of any particular shareholder (such as tax-exempt entities, certain financial companies, broker-dealers, shareholders subject to Alternative Minimum Tax, shareholders that actually or constructively own 10% or more of our voting securities, shareholders that hold ordinary shares or ADRs as part of straddle or hedging or conversion transaction, traders in securities that elect mark to market, banks and other financial institutions or shareholders whose functional currency is not the US dollar), some of which may be subject to special rules.




We urge shareholders to consult their own tax advisors as to the US, Israeli, or other tax consequences of the purchase, ownership and disposition of ordinary shares and ADRs, including, in particular, the effect of any foreign, state or local taxes.  For purposes of the entire Taxation discussion, we refer to ordinary shares and ADRs collectively as ordinary shares.




Israeli Tax Considerations




The following discussion refers to the current tax law applicable to companies in Israel, with special reference to its effect on us. This discussion also includes specified Israeli tax consequences to holders of our ordinary shares and Israeli Government programs benefiting us.




Corporate Tax Rate




The income of the Company is subject to corporate tax at the regular rate; the guidance of the amendment to the Income Tax Ordinance, 2005 from August 2008 prescribes a gradual reduction in the corporate tax rates and the resulting corporate tax rates starting 2008 are as follows: 2008 - 27%, 2009 - 26% and 2010 and thereafter - 25%.




On July 14, 2009, the “Knesset” (Israeli Parliament) passed the Law for Economic Efficiency (Amended Legislation for Implementing the Economic Plan for 2009 and 2010), 2009, which prescribes, among others, an additional gradual reduction in the corporate tax rates starting 2011 to the following tax rates: 2011 - 24%, 2012 - 23%, 2013 - 22%, 2014 - 21%, 2015 - 20%, 2016 and thereafter - 18%.




Tax Benefits for Research and Development




Israeli tax law allows, under specific conditions, a tax deduction in the year incurred for expenditures, including capital expenditures, relating to scientific research and development projects, if the expenditures are approved by the relevant Israeli government ministry, determined by the field of research, and the research and development is for the promotion of the company and is carried out by or on behalf of the company seeking the deduction. Expenditures not so approved are deductible over a three-year period. In the past, expenditures that were made out of proceeds made available to us through government grants were automatically deducted during a one year period.




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Special Provisions Relating to Taxation under Inflationary Conditions




The Income Tax Law (Inflationary Adjustments), 1985, generally referred to as the Inflationary Adjustments Law, represents an attempt to overcome the problems presented to a traditional tax system by an economy undergoing rapid inflation. The Inflationary Adjustments Law is highly complex. Its features, which were material to us, can be described as follows:




·
where a company's equity, as defined in the law, exceeds the cost of fixed assets as defined in the Inflationary Adjustments Law, a deduction from taxable income that takes into account the effect of the applicable annual rate of inflation on the excess is allowed up to a ceiling of 70% of taxable income in any single tax year, with the unused portion permitted to be carried forward on a linked basis. If the cost of fixed assets, as defined in the Inflationary Adjustments Law, exceeds a company's equity, then the excess multiplied by the applicable annual rate of inflation is added to taxable income; and




·
subject to specified limitations, depreciation deductions on fixed assets and losses carried forward are adjusted for inflation based on the increase in the consumer price index.




Under the Israel Income Tax Law (Adjustments for Inflation) (Amendment No. 20), 2008 (hereinafter - the Amendment), the provisions of the Adjustments Law no longer apply to our Company since 2008 tax year and thereafter, and therefore, the results of our company are measured for tax purposes in nominal terms. The amendment includes a number of transition provisions which includes the continued adjustment of depreciation deductions through the end of the 2007 tax year.




Israeli Estate and Gift Taxes




Generally, Israel does not currently impose taxes on inheritance or bona fide gifts. For transfer of assets by inheritance or gift that would normally be subject to capital gains tax or land appreciation tax, the recipient’s tax cost basis and date of purchase are generally deemed to be the same as those for the transferor of the property.




Capital Gains Tax on Sale of our Ordinary Shares by Both Residents and Non-Residents of Israel




Israeli law generally imposes a capital gains tax on the sale of capital assets located in Israel, including shares in Israeli resident companies, by both residents and non-residents of Israel, unless a specific exemption is available or unless a treaty between Israel and the country of the non-resident provides otherwise. The law distinguishes between the inflationary surplus and the real gain. The inflationary surplus is the portion of the total capital gain, which is equivalent to the increase of the relevant asset’s purchase price attributable to the increase in the Israeli consumer price index from the date of purchase to the date of sale. The real gain is the excess of the total capital gain over the inflationary surplus. A non resident that invests in taxable assets with foreign currency may elect to calculate the inflationary amount by using such foreign currency.




Non-Israeli residents will be exempt from Israeli capital gains tax on any gains derived from the sale of shares publicly traded on a stock exchange recognized by the Israeli Ministry of Finance (including the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange and NASDAQ), provided such shareholders did not acquire their shares prior to an initial public offering and that such capital gains are not derived by a permanent establishment of the foreign resident in Israel.   Notwithstanding the foregoing, dealers in securities in Israel are taxed at the regular tax rates applicable to business income. However, Non-Israeli corporations will not be entitled to such exemption if an Israeli resident (1) has a controlling interest of 25% or more in such non-Israeli corporation, or (2) is the beneficiary of, or is entitled to, 25% or more of the revenue or profits of such non-Israeli corporation, whether directly or indirectly. In any event, the provisions of the tax reform shall not affect the exemption from capital gains tax for gains accrued before January 1, 2003, as described in the previous paragraph.


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The capital gains tax imposed on Israeli tax resident individuals on the sale of securities is 20%. With respect to an Israeli tax resident individual who is a “substantial shareholder” on the date of sale of the securities or at any time during the 12 months preceding such sale, the capital gains tax rate was increased to 25%. A “substantial shareholder” is defined as someone who alone, or together with another person, holds, directly or indirectly, at least 10% in one or all of any of the means of control in the corporation. With respect to Israeli tax resident corporate investors, capital gains tax at the regular corporate rate will be imposed on such taxpayers on the sale of traded shares.




In addition, pursuant to the Convention Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Israel with Respect to Taxes on Income, as amended (the “United States- Israel Tax Treaty”), the sale, exchange or disposition of ordinary shares by a person who qualifies as a resident of the US within the meaning of the United States-Israel Tax Treaty and who is entitled to claim the benefits afforded to such person by the United States- Israel Tax Treaty (a “Treaty United States Resident”) generally will not be subject to the Israeli capital gains tax unless such “Treaty United States Resident” holds, directly or indirectly, shares representing 10% or more of our voting power during any part of the twelve- month period preceding such sale, exchange or disposition, subject to certain conditions or if the capital gains from such sale are considered as business income attributable to a permanent establishment of the US resident in Israel. However, under the United States-Israel Tax Treaty, such “Treaty United States Resident” would be permitted to claim a credit for such taxes against the US federal income tax imposed with respect to such sale, exchange or disposition, subject to the limitations in US laws applicable to foreign tax credits.




Taxation of Dividends




Non-residents of Israel are subject to income tax on income accrued or derived from sources in Israel.




The tax rate imposed on dividends distributed by an Israeli company to Israeli tax resident individuals or to non-Israeli residents is set at a rate of 20%. With respect to “substantial shareholders,” as defined above, the applicable tax rate is 25%. The taxation of dividends distributed by an Israeli company to another Israeli corporate tax resident is generally exempt from tax.




In any case, dividends distributed from the taxable income attributable to an Approved Enterprise, to both Israeli tax residents and non-Israeli residents remains subject to a 15% tax rate.




Notwithstanding, dividends distributed by an Israeli company to Israeli tax resident individuals or to non-Israeli residents are subject to a 20% withholding tax (15% in the case of dividends distributed from the taxable income attributable to an Approved Enterprise), unless a lower rate is provided in a treaty between Israel and the shareholder’s country of residence. Dividends distributed by an Israeli company to another Israeli tax resident company are generally exempt, unless such dividends are distributed from taxable income attributable to an Approved Enterprise, in which case such dividends are taxed at a rate of 15%, or unless such dividends are distributed from income that was not sourced in Israel, in which case such dividends are taxed at a rate of 25%.




Under the US-Israel Tax Treaty, the maximum Israeli tax and withholding tax on dividends paid to a holder of ordinary shares who is a resident of the US is generally 25%, but is reduced to 12.5% if the dividends are paid to a corporation that holds in excess of 10% of the voting rights of company during the company’s taxable year preceding the distribution of the Dividend and the portion of the company’s taxable year in which the dividend was distributed. Dividends of an Israeli company derived from the income of an Approved Enterprise will still be subject to a 15% dividend withholding tax; if the dividend is attributable partly to income derived from an Approved Enterprise, and partly to other sources of income, the withholding rate will be a blended rate reflecting the relative portions of the two types of income. A non-resident of Israel who has dividend income derived from or accrued in Israel, from which tax was withheld at the source, is generally exempt from the duty to file tax returns in Israel in respect of such income, provided such income was not derived from a business conducted in Israel by the taxpayer.


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US Federal Income Tax Considerations




The following discusses the material US federal income tax consequences to a holder of our ordinary shares, who qualifies as a US holder, which is defined as:




·
a citizen or resident of the US;




·
a corporation created or organized under the laws of the US, the District of Columbia, or any state; or




·
a trust or estate, treated, for US federal income tax purposes, as a domestic trust or estate.




This discussion is based on current provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, which we refer to as the Code, current and proposed Treasury regulations promulgated under the Code, and administrative and judicial decisions as of the date of this report, all of which are subject to change, possibly on a retroactive basis. This discussion does not address any aspect of state, local or non-US tax laws. Except where noted, this discussion addresses only those holders who hold our shares as capital assets.  This discussion does not purport to be a comprehensive description of all of the tax considerations that may be relevant to US holders entitled to special treatment under US federal income tax laws, for example, financial institutions, insurance companies, tax-exempt organizations and broker/dealers, and it does not address all aspects of US federal income taxation that may be relevant to any particular shareholder based on the shareholder's individual circumstances. In particular, this discussion does not address the potential application of the alternative minimum tax, or the special US federal income tax rules applicable in special circumstances, including to US holders who:




·
have elected mark-to-market accounting;




·
hold our ordinary shares as part of a straddle, hedge or conversion transaction with other investments;




·
own directly, indirectly or by attribution at least 10% of our voting power;




·
are tax exempt entities;




·
are persons who acquire shares in connection with employment or other performance of services; and




·
have a functional currency that is not the US dollar.




Additionally, this discussion does not consider the tax treatment of partnerships or persons who hold ordinary shares through a partnership or other pass-through entity or the possible application of US federal gift or estate taxes. Material aspects of US federal income tax relevant to a holder other than a US holder are also described below.




Each shareholder should consult its tax advisor regarding the particular tax consequences to such holder of ownership and disposition of our shares, as well as any tax consequences that may arise under the laws of any other relevant foreign, state, local, or other taxing jurisdiction.




Taxation of Dividends Paid on Ordinary Shares




Subject to the description of the passive foreign investment company rules below, a US holder will be required to include in gross income as ordinary income the amount of any distribution paid on ordinary shares, including any Israeli taxes withheld from the amount paid, to the extent the distribution is paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits as determined for US federal income tax purposes. Distributions in excess of these earnings and profits will be applied against and will reduce the US holder’s basis in the ordinary shares and, to the extent in excess of this basis, will be treated as gain from the sale or exchange of ordinary shares.


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Certain dividend income may be eligible for a reduced rate of taxation. Dividend income will be taxed to a non-corporate holder at the applicable long-term capital gains rate if the dividend is received from a “qualified foreign corporation,” and the shareholder of such foreign corporation holds such stock for more than 60 days during the 121 day period that begins on the date that is 60 days before the ex-dividend date for the stock. The holding period is tolled for any days on which the shareholder has reduced his risk of loss. A “qualified foreign corporation” is either a corporation that is eligible for the benefits of a comprehensive income tax treaty with the US or a corporation whose stock, the shares of which are with respect to any dividend paid by such corporation, is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States. However, a foreign corporation will not be treated as qualified if it is a passive foreign investment company (as discussed below) for the year in which the dividend was paid or the preceding year. Distributions of current or accumulated earnings and profits paid in foreign currency to a US holder will be includible in the income of a US holder in a US dollar amount calculated by reference to the exchange rate on the day the distribution is received. A US holder that receives a foreign currency distribution and converts the foreign currency into US dollars subsequent to receipt will have foreign exchange gain or loss based on any appreciation or depreciation in the value of the foreign currency against the US dollar, which will generally be US source ordinary income or loss.




As described above, we will generally be required to withhold Israeli income tax from any dividends paid to holders who are not resident in Israel. See “- Israeli Tax Considerations—Taxation of Dividends” above. If a US holder receives a dividend from us that is subject to Israeli withholding, the following would apply:




·
You must include the gross amount of the dividend, not reduced by the amount of Israeli tax withheld, in your US taxable income.




·
You may be able to claim the Israeli tax withheld as a foreign tax credit against your US income tax liability.  However, to the extent that 25% or more of our gross income from all sources was effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the US (or treated as effectively connected, with limited exceptions) for a three-year period ending with the close of the taxable year preceding the year in which the dividends are declared, a portion of this dividend will be treated as US source income, possibly reducing the allowable foreign tax.




·
The foreign tax credit is subject to significant and complex limitations. Generally, the credit can offset only the part of your US tax attributable to your net foreign source passive income. Additionally, if we pay dividends at a time when 50% or more of our stock is owned by US persons, you may be required to treat the part of the dividend attributable to US source earnings and profits as US source income, possibly reducing the allowable credit.




·
A US holder will be denied a foreign tax credit with respect to Israeli income tax withheld from dividends received on the ordinary shares to the extent the US holder has not held the ordinary shares for at least 16 days of the 31-day period beginning on the date which is 15 days before the ex-dividend date or, alternatively, to the extent the US holder is under an obligation to make related payments with respect to substantially similar or related property. Any days during which a US holder has substantially diminished its risk of loss on the ordinary shares are not counted toward meeting the 16-day holding period required by the statute.




·
If you do not elect to claim foreign taxes as a credit, you will be entitled to deduct the Israeli income tax withheld from your XTL dividends in determining your taxable income.




·
Individuals who do not claim itemized deductions, but instead utilize the standard deduction, may not claim a deduction for the amount of the Israeli income taxes withheld.


·
If you are a US corporation holding our stock, the general rule is that you cannot claim the dividends-received deduction with respect to our dividends.  There is an exception to this rule if you own at least 10% of our ordinary shares (by vote) and certain conditions are met.
  Special rules, described below, apply if we are a passive foreign investment company.


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Taxation of the Disposition of Ordinary Shares




Subject to the description of the passive foreign investment company rules below, upon the sale, exchange or other disposition of our ordinary shares, a US holder will recognize capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the US holder's basis in the ordinary shares, which is usually the cost of these shares, and the amount realized on the disposition. Capital gain from the sale, exchange or other disposition of ordinary shares held more than one year is long-term capital gain and is eligible for a reduced rate of taxation for non-corporate holders. In general, gain realized by a US holder on a sale, exchange or other disposition of ordinary shares generally will be treated as US source income for US foreign tax credit purposes. A loss realized by a US holder on the sale, exchange or other disposition of ordinary shares is generally allocated to US source income. However, regulations require the loss to be allocated to foreign source income to the extent certain dividends were received by the taxpayer within the 24-month period preceding the date on which the taxpayer recognized the loss. The deductibility of a loss realized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of ordinary shares is subject to limitations for both corporate and individual shareholders.




A US holder that uses the cash method of accounting calculates the US dollar value of the proceeds received from a sale of ordinary shares as of the date that the sale settles, and will generally have no additional foreign currency gain or loss on the sale, while a US holder that uses the accrual method of accounting is required to calculate the value of the proceeds of the sale as of the trade date and may therefore realize foreign currency gain or loss, unless the US holder has elected to use the settlement date to determine its proceeds of sale for purposes of calculating this foreign currency gain or loss. In addition, a US holder that receives foreign currency upon disposition of our ordinary shares and converts the foreign currency into US dollars subsequent to receipt will have foreign exchange gain or loss based on any appreciation or depreciation in the value of the foreign currency against the US dollar, which will generally be US source ordinary income or loss.




Tax Consequences If We Are A Passive Foreign Investment Company




Special tax rules apply to the timing and character of income received by a US holder of a PFIC. We will be a PFIC if either 75% or more of our gross income in a tax year is passive income or the average percentage of our assets (by value) that produce or are held for the production of passive income in a tax year is at least 50%. The IRS, has indicated that cash balances, even if held as working capital, are considered to be assets that produce passive income. Therefore, any determination of PFIC status will depend upon the sources of our income, and the relative values of passive and non- passive assets, including goodwill. Furthermore, because the goodwill of a publicly-traded corporation such as us is largely a function of the trading price of its shares, the valuation of that goodwill is subject to significant change throughout each year. A determination as to a corporation’s status as a PFIC must be made annually. We believe that we were likely not a PFIC for the taxable years ended December 31, 2009, 2008, 2005 and 2004.  However, we believe that we were a PFIC for the taxable years ended December 31, 2007 and 2006.  Although such a determination is fundamentally factual in nature and generally cannot be made until the close of the applicable taxable year, based on our current operations, we believe that we may be classified as a PFIC in the 2010 taxable year and possibly in subsequent years.  In addition, even though we may not be a PFIC in any one particular year, the PFIC taint remains, and the special PFIC tax regime will continue to apply.




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If we are classified as a PFIC, a special tax regime would apply to both (a) any “excess distribution” by us (generally, the US holder's ratable share of distributions in any year that are greater than 125% of the average annual distributions received by such US holder in the three preceding years or its holding period, if shorter) and (b) any gain recognized on the sale or other disposition of your ordinary shares. Under this special regime, any excess distribution and recognized gain would be treated as ordinary income and the federal income tax on such ordinary income is determined under the following steps: (i) the amount of the excess distribution or gain is allocated ratably over the US holder's holding period for our ordinary shares;  (ii) tax is determined for amounts allocated to the first year in the holding period in which we were classified as a PFIC and all subsequent years (except the year in which the excess distribution was received or the sale occurred) by applying the highest applicable tax rate in effect in the year to which the income was allocated; (iii) an interest charge is added to this tax calculated by applying the underpayment interest rate to the tax for each year determined under the preceding sentence from the due date of the income tax return for such year to the due date of the return for the year in which the excess distribution or sale occurs; and (iv) amounts allocated to a year prior to the first year in the US holder’s holding period in which we were classified as a PFIC or to the year in which the excess distribution or the disposition occurred are taxed as ordinary income and no interest charge applies.




A US holder may generally avoid the PFIC regime by electing to treat his PFIC shares as a “qualified electing fund.” If a US holder elects to treat PFIC shares as a qualified electing fund, also known as a “QEF Election,” the US holder must include annually in gross income (for each year in which PFIC status is met) his pro rata share of the PFIC’s ordinary earnings and net capital gains, whether or not such amounts are actually distributed to the US holder.  A US holder may make a QEF Election with respect to a PFIC for any taxable year in which he was a shareholder. A QEF Election is effective for the year in which the election is made and all subsequent taxable years of the US holder. Procedures exist for both retroactive elections and the filing of protective statements. A US holder making the QEF Election must make the election on or before the due date, as extended, for the filing of the US holder's income tax return for the first taxable year to which the election will apply.




A QEF Election is made on a shareholder-by-shareholder basis. A US holder must make a QEF Election by completing Form 8621, Return by a Shareholder of a Passive Foreign Investment Company or Qualified Electing Fund, and attaching it to the holder’s timely filed US federal income tax return.  We have complied with the record-keeping and reporting requirements that are a prerequisite for US holders to make a QEF Election for the 2007 and 2006 tax years.  For this purpose, we have made our 2007 and 2006 PFIC annual information statement available under a link entitled “PFIC Annual Information Statement” under the “Investor Information” section on our corporate website, which you may access at www.xtlbio.com.  While we plan to continue to comply with such requirements, if, in the future, meeting those record-keeping and reporting requirements becomes onerous, we may decide, in our sole discretion, that such compliance is impractical and will so notify US holders.




Alternatively, a US holder may also generally avoid the PFIC regime by making a so-called “mark-to-market” election.  Such an election may be made by a US holder with respect to ordinary shares owned at the close of such holder's taxable year, provided that we are a PFIC and the ordinary shares are considered “marketable stock.” The ordinary shares will be marketable stock if they are regularly traded on a national securities exchange that is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the national market system established pursuant to section 11A of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, or an equivalent regulated and supervised foreign securities exchange.




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If a US holder were to make a mark-to-market election with respect to ordinary shares, such holder generally will be required to include in its annual gross income the excess of the fair market value of the PFIC shares at year-end over such shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the ordinary shares.  Such amounts will be taxable to the US holder as ordinary income, and will increase the holder’s tax basis in the ordinary shares. Alternatively, if in any year, a United States holder’s tax basis exceeds the fair market value of the ordinary shares at year-end, then the US holder generally may take an ordinary loss deduction to the extent of the aggregate amount of ordinary income inclusions for prior years not previously recovered through loss deductions and any loss deductions taken will reduce the shareholder’s tax basis in the ordinary shares.  Gains from an actual sale or other disposition of the ordinary shares with a “mark-to-market” election will be treated as ordinary income, and any losses incurred on an actual sale or other disposition of the ordinary shares will be treated as an ordinary loss to the extent of any prior “unreversed inclusions” as defined in Section 1296(d) of the Code.




The mark-to-market election is made on a shareholder-by-shareholder basis.  The mark-to-market election is made by completing Form 8621, Return by a Shareholder of a Passive Foreign Investment Company or Qualified Electing Fund, and attaching it to the holder’s timely filed US federal income tax return for the year of election.  Such election is effective for the taxable year for which made and all subsequent years until either (a) the ordinary shares cease to be marketable stock or (b) the election is revoked with the consent of the IRS.




A US holder who did not make an election either to (i) treat us as a “qualified electing fund,” or (ii) mark our ordinary shares to market, will be subject to the following:




·
gain recognized by the US holder upon the disposition of, as well as income recognized  upon receiving certain excess distributions on the ordinary shares would be taxable as ordinary income;




·
the US holder would be required to allocate the excess distribution and/or disposition gain ratably over such US holder's entire holding period for such ordinary shares;




·
the amount allocated to each year other than the year of the excess distribution or disposition and pre-PFIC years would be subject to tax at the highest applicable tax rate, and an interest charge would be imposed with respect to the resulting tax liability;




·
the US holder would be required to file an annual return on IRS Form 8621 for the years in which distributions were received on and gain was recognized on dispositions of, our ordinary shares; and




·
any US holder who acquired the ordinary shares upon the death of the shareholder would not receive a step-up to market value of his income tax basis for such ordinary shares. Instead such US holder beneficiary would have a tax basis equal to the decedent's basis, if lower.




In view of the complexity of the issues regarding our treatment as a PFIC, US shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisors for guidance as to our status as a PFIC.





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US Federal Income Tax Consequences for Non-US holders of Ordinary Shares
  Except as described in “Information Reporting and Back-up Withholding” below, a Non-US holder of ordinary shares will not be subject to US federal income or withholding tax on the payment of dividends on, and the proceeds from the disposition of, ordinary shares, unless:
  ·
the item is effectively connected with the conduct by the Non-US holder of a trade or business in the US and, in the case of a resident of a country which has a tax treaty with the US, the item is attributable to a permanent establishment in the US;


·
the Non-US holder is subject to tax under the provisions of US tax law applicable to US expatriates; or




·
the individual non-US holder is present in the US for 183 days or more in the taxable year of the disposition and certain other conditions are met.




Information Reporting and Back-Up Withholding




US holders generally are subject to information reporting requirements with respect to dividends paid in the US on ordinary shares. Existing regulations impose back-up withholding on dividends paid in the US on ordinary shares unless the US holder provides IRS Form W-9 or otherwise establishes an exemption. US holders are subject to information reporting and back-up withholding on proceeds paid from the disposition of ordinary shares unless the US holder provides IRS Form W-9 or otherwise establishes an exemption.





Non-US holders generally are not subject to information reporting or back-up withholding with respect to dividends paid on, or upon the disposition of, ordinary shares, provided that the non-US holder provides a taxpayer identification number, certifies to its foreign status, or otherwise establishes an exemption to the US financial institution holding the ordinary shares.





Prospective investors should consult their tax advisors concerning the effect, if any, of these Treasury regulations on an investment in ordinary shares. Back-up withholding is not an additional tax.  The amount of any back-up withholding will be allowed as a credit against a holder's US federal income tax liability and may entitle the holder to a refund, provided that specified required information is furnished to the IRS on a timely basis.





US Federal Income Tax Consequences for XTL





As of April 7, 2009, we did not have a “permanent establishment” in the US. Our board of directors consists of a majority of Israeli residents and our CEO is domiciled in Israel. However, for the period we did have a “permanent establishment” in the US, any income attributable to such US permanent establishment would be subject to US corporate income tax in the same manner as if we were a US corporation.  The maximum US corporate income tax rate (not including applicable state and local tax rates) is currently at 35%.  In addition, if we had income attributable to the permanent establishment in the US, we may be subject to an additional branch profits tax of 30% on our US effectively connected earnings and profits, subject to adjustment, for that taxable year if certain conditions occur, unless we qualified for the reduced 12.5% US branch profits tax rate pursuant to the United States-Israel tax treaty.  We would be potentially able to credit any foreign taxes that may become due in the future against its US tax liability in connection with income attributable to its US permanent establishment and subject to both US and foreign income tax.




As of December 31, 2010, we did not earn any taxable income for US federal tax purposes and we do not have a permanent establishment.  If we eventually earn taxable income attributable to our US permanent establishment, we would be able to utilize accumulated loss carryforwards to offset such income only to the extent these carryforwards were attributable to our US permanent establishment. As of December 31, 2010, the net operating tax losses (“NOL”) of the US subsidiaries amounted to approximately $23 million, The utilization of these NOLs is subject to significant limitations to offset income in the future, if any due to the shifts in ownership of XTL that result from the Bio-Gal transaction (see “Item 8 financial information-material contracts”) and subject to further limitations in case of a future offering or capital raise, resulting in more than 50 percentage point change over a three year look back period, and expiring through 2029. Pursuant to a US tax rule.




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The above comments are intended as a general guide to the current position. Any person who is in any doubt as to his or her taxation position, and who requires more detailed information than the general outline above or who is subject to tax in a jurisdiction other than the United States should consult professional advisers.





Documents on Display




We are required to file reports and other information with the SEC under the Exchange Act and the regulations thereunder applicable to foreign private issuers. You may inspect and copy reports and other information filed by us with the SEC at the SEC’s public reference facilities described below. Although as a foreign private issuer we are not required to file periodic information as frequently or as promptly as US companies, we generally announce publicly our interim and year-end results promptly on a voluntary basis and will file that periodic information with the SEC under cover of Form 6-K. As a foreign private issuer, we are also exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and other provisions in Section 16 of the Exchange Act.




You may review and obtain copies of our filings with the SEC, including any exhibits and schedules, at the SEC’s public reference facilities in Room 1580, 100 F. Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. You may call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference rooms. Our periodic filings will also be available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. These SEC filings are also available to the public from commercial document retrieval services. Any statement in this annual report about any of our contracts or other documents is not necessarily complete. If the contract or document is filed as an exhibit to this annual report, the contract or document is deemed to modify the description contained in this annual report. We urge you to review the exhibits themselves for a complete description of the contract or document.




ITEM 11. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK




Interest Rate Risk. The primary objective of our investment activities is to preserve principal while maximizing our income from investments and minimizing our market risk. We invest in bank deposits in accordance with our investment policy. As of December 31, 2010, our portfolio of financial instruments consists of cash and cash equivalents and restricted short-term bank deposits with multiple institutions. The average duration of all of our investments held as of December 31, 2010, was less than one year. Due to the short-term nature of these investments, we believe we have no material exposure to interest rate risk arising from our investments.


88





Foreign Currency and Inflation Risk. We have generated all of our revenues and hold most of our cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and marketable securities in US dollars. Until 2008, substantial amount of our operating expenses were in US dollars. Commencing from 2009 (after the failure of the Bicifadine clinical trial) the Company's head office moved back to Israel and thus the portion of our expenses in New Israeli Shekels (“NIS”) and our cash held in NIS has increased, mainly due to payment to Israeli employees and suppliers. Additionally, our future activities could lead us to perform a clinical trial in Israel, which may lead us to reassess the use of the US dollar as our functional currency. As a result, we are exposed to the risk that the US dollar will be devalued against the NIS or other currencies, and consequentially our financial results could be harmed if we are unable to guard against currency fluctuations in Israel or other countries in which services and supplies are obtained in the future. Accordingly, we may decide in the future to hold a significant portion of our cash, cash equivalents, bank deposits and marketable securities in NIS as well as to enter into currency hedging transactions to decrease the risk of financial exposure from fluctuations in the exchange rates of currencies. These measures, however, may not adequately protect us from the adverse effects of inflation in Israel.  In addition, we are exposed to the risk that the rate of inflation in Israel will exceed the rate of devaluation of the New Israeli Shekel in relation to the US dollar or that the timing of any devaluation may lag behind inflation in Israel.




ITEM 12. DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES OTHER THAN EQUITY SECURITIES




American Depositary Shares





Fees Payable By ADS Holders.A copy of our Form of Deposit Agreement with The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Depositary”) (including the Form of American Depositary Receipt or “ADR”) was filed with the SEC as an exhibit to our Form F-6 filed on November 28, 2007 (the “Deposit Agreement”). Pursuant to the Deposit Agreement, holders of our ADSs may have to pay to the Depositary, either directly or indirectly, fees or charges up to the amounts set forth in the table below.




Item

Associated Fee

Depositary Action1.

Taxes and other governmental charges

As applicable2.

Registration fees in effect for the registration of transfers of shares generally on the share register of XTL or foreign registrar and applicable to transfers of shares to or from the name of the Depositary or its nominee or the custodian or its nominee on the making of deposits or withdrawals

As applicable3.

Expenses incurred by the Depositary

•   Cable, telex and facsimile transmission (where  expressly provided for in the Deposit Agreement)•   Foreign currency conversion into US dollars4.

$5.00 or less per 100 ADSs (or portion thereof)

Execution and delivery of ADRs for distributions and dividends in shares and rights to subscribe for additional shares or rights of any other nature and surrender of ADRs for the purposes of withdrawal, including the termination of the Deposit Agreement




89




5.

$0.02 or less per ADS (or portion thereof)

Any cash distribution made pursuant to the Deposit Agreement, including, among other things:•   cash distributions or dividends,•   distributions other than cash, shares or rights,•   distributions in shares, and•   rights of any other nature, including rights to subscribe for additional shares.6.

A fee for the distribution of securities equal to the fee for the execution and delivery of ADSs which would have been charged as a result of the deposit of such securities

Distributions of securities other than cash, shares or rights7.

A fee of $.02 or less per ADS (or portion thereof) for depositary services, which will accrue on the last day of each calendar year, provided, however, that no fee will be assessed to the extent a fee of $.02 was charged pursuant to Item 5 above during that calendar year

As applicable8.

Any other charge payable by the Depositary, any of the Depositary's agents, including its custodian, or the agents of the Depositary's agents in connection with the servicing of shares or other deposited securities

As applicable




Fees Paid to XTL by the Depositary.  As of January 1, 2010 through May 30, 2011, the Company has not received any fees, direct payments or indirect payments from The Bank of New York Mellon.




PART II




ITEM 13. DEFAULTS, DIVIDEND ARREARAGES AND DELINQUENCIES




Not applicable.




ITEM 14. MATERIAL MODIFICATIONS TO THE RIGHTS OF SECURITY HOLDERS AND USE OF PROCEEDS




Not applicable.




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ITEM 15. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES




(a)           Disclosure controls and procedures.   Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining effective disclosure controls and procedures, as defined under Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  As of December 31, 2010, an evaluation was performed under the supervision and with the participation of our management of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures.  Based on that evaluation, management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2010 were effective.





(b)           Internal controls over financial reporting.  Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate control over financial reporting, as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(f) of the exchange Act. Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2010. In making this assessment, our management used the criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). Also, our evaluation was conducted pursuant to section 9b(c) to the Israeli Securities regulations (Periodic and Immediate Reports), 1970, which came into effect on the reporting for December 31, 2010 for the first time (as we are traded on the TASE). Based on that evaluation, our management believes our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2010.
 
 All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective may not prevent or detect misstatements and can provide only reasonable assurances with respect to the preparation and presentation of financial statements.
 
 Kesselman & Kesselman, a member of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, the independent registered public accounting firm that audited the financial statements included in this annual report, has issued an audit report as of December 31, 2010, and dated March 29, 2011 relating to the financial statements which are incorporated by reference into this annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2010.  See “Item 18. Financial Statements.”


(c)           Internal controls.  There have been no significant changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.




ITEM 16. RESERVED




Not applicable.




ITEM 16A. AUDIT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL EXPERT




Our Board of Directors has determined that Jaron Diament, chairperson of our audit committee, is an audit committee financial expert, as defined by applicable SEC regulations, and is independent in accordance with applicable SEC regulations.





ITEM 16B. CODE OF ETHICS




We have adopted a Code of Conduct applicable that applies to all employees, directors and officers of our company, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller and other individuals performing similar functions. A copy of our Code of Conduct can be found on our website (www.xtlbio.com) and may also be obtained, without charge, upon a written request addressed to our investor relations department, XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., PO Box 4033, Herzliya 46140, Israel.





ITEM 16C. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES





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





Our audit committee is responsible for the oversight of the independent auditors’ work. The audit committee’s policy is to pre-approve all audit and non-audit services provided by our independent auditors, Kesselman & Kesselman, a member of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd. (“PWC”). These services may include audit services, audit-related services and tax services, as further described below.


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Principal Accountant Fees and Services





We were billed the following fees for professional services rendered by PWC, for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009.


2010


2009(in thousands US$)Audit fees


60



62Audit-related fees


-



-Tax fees


-



-All Other fees


12



8Total


72



70





The audit fees for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively, were for professional services rendered for the audit of our annual consolidated financial statements, review of interim consolidated financial statements, statutory audits,and review of the outline report related to the Bio-Gal transaction in 2009. Other fees for the year ended December 31, 2010 were for professional services rendered for the review of our Israeli prospectus.




For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010 and 2009, all of our audit-related fees, tax fees and other fees were pre-approved by our audit committee.




ITEM 16D. EXEMPTIONS FROM THE LISTING STANDARDS FOR AUDIT COMMITTEES




Not applicable.




ITEM 16E. PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES BY THE ISSUER AND AFFILIATED PURCHASERS




Not applicable.




ITEM 16G. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE




Not applicable.  Our securities are not traded on a national securities exchange.  Our ADRs are traded on the Pink Sheets, an inter-dealer electronic quotation and trading system in the over-the-counter (OTC) securities market, under the symbol “XTLBY.PK.”  Our ordinary shares are traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the symbol “XTL.”




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PART III





ITEM 17. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS




We have elected to furnish financial statements and related information specified in Item 18.




ITEM 18. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS




Our audited and consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2010, as well as our accountant’s report, are incorporated by reference from Form 6-K filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 31, 2011, at pages C-1 through C-98.




ITEM 19. EXHIBITS




The following exhibits are filed as part of this annual report:


ExhibitNumber

Description3.1

Articles of Association†4.1

Form of Share Certificate (including both Hebrew and English translations). *4.2

Form of American Depositary Receipt (included in Exhibit 4.3). †4.3

Deposit Agreement, dated as of August 31, 2005, by and between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., The Bank of New York, as Depositary, and each holder and beneficial owner of American Depositary Receipts issued thereunder. †4.5

Form of Director and Senior Management Lock−up Letter.10.16

2001 Share Option Plan dated February 28, 2001. †10.17

Letter of Understanding, dated August 5, 2005, relating to the License Agreement dated June 2, 2004 between Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. †10.26

License Agreement Between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and VivoQuest, Inc., dated August 17, 2005†10.27

Asset Purchase Agreement Between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and VivoQuest, Inc., dated August 17, 2005†10.28

Securities Purchase Agreement, dated March 17, 2006, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., and the purchasers named therein. #10.29

Registration Rights Agreement, dated March 22, 2006, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and the purchasers named therein. #10.30

Form of Ordinary Share Purchase Warrants, dated March 22, 2006, issued to the purchasers under the Securities Purchase Agreement. ^10.32

License Agreement between XTL Development, Inc. and DOV Pharmaceutical, Inc., dated January 15, 2007. *10.34

Securities Purchase Agreement, dated October 25, 2007, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., and the purchasers named therein. #10.35

Registration Rights Agreement, dated October 25, 2007, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and the purchasers named therein. #10.36

License Agreement By and Between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. dated March 19, 2008. #10.37

Amended and Restated License Agreement By and Between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Presidio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. dated August 4, 2008. &,>




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10.38

Services Agreement, dated as of October 15, 2008, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., Quoque Bioventures LLC and Antecip Bioventures LLC. +10.39

Stock Appreciation Rights Agreement, dated as of October 15, 2008, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., XTL Development Inc., and Quoque Bioventures LLC. +10.40

Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of October 15, 2008, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., XTL Development Inc., and Quoque Bioventures LLC. +10.41

Stock Appreciation Rights Agreement, dated as of October 15, 2008, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., XTL Development Inc., and Antecip Bioventures LLC. +10.42

Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of October 15, 2008, by and among XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., XTL Development Inc., and Quoque Bioventures LLC. +10.43

Asset Purchase Agreement, dated as of March 18, 2009 between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Bio-Gal Ltd. &, >10.44

Research and License Agreement Between Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., Mor Research Applications Ltd., Biogal Ltd. (under its previous name Haverfield Ltd.) and Biogal Advanced Biotechnology Ltd. dated January 7, 2002. &, >10.45

Amendment to Research and License Agreement Between Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., Mor Research Applications Ltd., Haverfield Ltd. and Biogal Advanced Biotechnology Ltd. effective as of April 1, 2008. &, >10.46

Amended Bio-Gal Agreement, entered into December 31, 2009. @10.47

Share Transfer Agreement, entered into December 31, 2009.  @10.48

Termination to Bicifadine License, dated March 2010.  @10.49

Employment Agreement, dated as of January 18, 2010, between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and David Grossman.  @10.50

Employment Agreement, dated as of July 29, 2009, between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Ronen Twito.  @10.51

Consulting Agreement, dated as of August 27, 2010, between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Moshe Mittelman.10.52

Option to License Agreement, dated as of September 1, 2010, between XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and Yeda Research and Development Company Limited.21.1

List of Subsidiaries23.1

Consent of Kesselman & Kesselman, a member of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd, dated May 30, 2011.31.1

Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a), as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, dated May 30, 2011.31.2

Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a), as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, dated May 30, 2011.32.1

Certification of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, dated May 30, 2011




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† Incorporated by reference from the registration statement on Form 20-F filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 14, 2005, as it may be amended or restated.





^ Incorporated by reference from the registration statement on Form F-1 filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 20, 2006, as it may be amended or restated.





* Incorporated by reference from the annual report on Form 20-F filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 23, 2007.





# Incorporated by reference from the annual report on Form 20-F filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, 2008.





+ Incorporated by reference from the current annual report on Form 6-K filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 24, 2008.





& Incorporated by reference from the annual report on Form 20-F filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 6, 2009.





@ Incorporated by reference from the annual report on Form 20-F filed by XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 30, 2010.





> Confidential treatment has been requested with respect to the omitted portions of this exhibit.


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SIGNATURES




The registrant hereby certifies that it meets all the requirements for filing on Form 20-F and that it has duly caused and authorized the undersigned to sign this registration statement on its behalf.




XTL BIOPHARMACEUTICALS LTD.(Registrant)Signature:
/s/ David GrossmanDavid GrossmanChief Executive OfficerDate: May 30, 2011




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