Full Press Release Details
Lausanne, 6 June 2018
to the Ordinary Shareholders' Meeting
| Date: | 6 July 2018, at 10.30 am Swiss time |
| Place: | EPFL Innovation Park Building D, ground floor, Uranus Meeting room, 1015 Lausanne |
We are pleased to report that AC Immune
has continued to make significant progress in 2017 - our first full year as a public company. Notably, our lead asset, crenezumab,
entered a second pivotal Phase 3 trial in Alzheimer's disease with our partner Genentech, a member of the Roche group. And
there were also positive important developments and progress with our other assets, along with an exciting new collaboration with
Essex Biotechnology in Asia, our first endeavor in this region.
noteworthy examples of pipeline progress occurred in the first quarter 2018 when we announced plans to start the first-in-human
study for an alpha-synuclein positron emission tomography (PET) tracer for earlier
and more accurate diagnosis of Parkinson's disease. In addition, our Tau small molecules (Tau Morphomers) demonstrated target-specific
reduction of pathological Tau and related neuro-inflammation as well as functional improvement.
Today AC Immune is built on three strong
strategic pillars - Alzheimer's disease, neuro-orphan indications and diagnostics. Further, we believe that precision
medicine, a rapidly advancing science, which provides highly accurate matching of therapeutics and disease, will significantly
improve patients' lives. As we continue to advance and grow, we are investing time and talent in this game-changing factor
Leading expertise in the pathology
of misfolded proteins
We continued to invest in our core highly-valued
R&D resources and we aim at advancing our portfolio as rapidly as possible - in
partnerships or alone - as we pursue our mission of being a leader in precision medicine for neurodegenerative diseases.
AC Immune's deep pipeline features
nine therapeutic and three diagnostic product candidates - with five product candidates currently in clinical trials. Notably,
the anti-Tau antibody - also partnered with Genentech - moved into a Phase 2 trial for Alzheimer's disease.
The pipeline expansion with new antibodies
active against alpha-synuclein and TDP-43 marks the advancement of our business strategy by targeting pathological proteins involved
in Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, beyond Abeta and Tau. These two antibodies may potentially also address
significant neurodegenerative and orphan indications.
Based on the promising safety
profile and potential dose dependent reduction of amyloid plaques, we plan to move ACI-24, the anti-Abeta vaccine program
for Alzheimer's disease, forward into a Phase 2 clinical trial. Also we completed recruitment
for a Phase 1b trial targeting Alzheimer's disease-like characteristics in individuals with Down syndrome.
by the latest data, AC Immune and our partner Janssen Pharmaceuticals jointly decided to
advance the ACI-35 anti-Tau vaccine program for Alzheimer's disease into the next
stage of development.
The measurable progress of our diagnostic
portfolio has become an important value driver for the Company. We will commence in the second half 2018 a first in human study
for the potentially first alpha-synuclein positron emission tomography (PET) tracer for Parkinson's disease. This new compound
is highly selective for alpha-synuclein aggregates, a recognized and known target for Parkinson's disease.
During 2017, we were also honored to have
been awarded a continuation of a 2015 research grant from the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) for
this important diagnostic program.
AC Immune has one of the largest Tau pipelines
in the industry. Several Tau small molecule candidates, derived from the Company's
proprietary MorphomerTM platform and designed to cross the blood brain barrier,
have demonstrated target-specific reduction of pathological Tau and related neuroinflammation as well as functional improvement
in proof-of-concept studies in Alzheimer's disease. The IND/CTA enabling studies have started and a Phase 1 study will commence
15 years anniversary: from a start-up
to a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company
2018 is a landmark year as we are celebrating
15 years of AC Immune. We started in 2003 with fundamental new insights into the pathology of misfolding proteins and how they
might be a root cause of Alzheimer's disease. That core expertise will also continue to drive our future success as we leverage
it in related diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Down syndrome.
A key element of our success is a strong
company culture based on a highly talented and rapidly growing team. While we advance our company to the next exciting stage of
development it is vital that we continue to focus on our commitment to innovation and maintain our core entrepreneurial attitude.
So where do we go from here? Our strategy
is clear: we will continue to invest and create value across the three pillars of our business - Alzheimer's disease,
neuro-orphan indications and diagnostics.
We are celebrating 15 years of AC Immune
- 15 years of extraordinary achievements by outstanding people. In closing, we would like to thank all our employees for
their passion, team spirit and commitment.
achievements of the past 15 years would not have been possible without the long-term commitment and belief of many of you, our
highly valued shareholders. We greatly appreciate the insights and feedback you give us whenever we have the opportunity to meet
face to face, and we look forward to sharing with you the important milestones planned over the coming 12 months.
Together, we are justified in looking
ahead with great optimism to another 15 years of excellence and innovation.
| Martin Velasco | Prof. Andrea Pfeifer | |
| Chairman of the Board | CEO |
Kindly find hereafter the agenda items
and proposals of the Board of Directors in connection with the second ordinary annual meeting of AC Immune SA as a public company:
Agenda Items and Proposals of the Board
The Board proposes to approve
the Annual Report, the Annual Statutory Financial Statements and the Financial Statements under IFRS of AC Immune SA for the year
2017, and to take note of the Reports of the Auditors. Copies of these documents are available for download in the "Investors"
section of our website (www.acimmune.com).
The Board of Directors proposes
that the net loss of the year 2017 in the amount of KCHF 25'868 is added to the loss brought forward of KCHF 32'558
resulting in a reduced new balance of loss brought forward of KCHF 58'426. Under IFRS accounting principles, the net
loss for the business year 2017 amounted to KCHF 26'411.
The Board proposes that the
members of the Board and the Executive Committee are discharged from their liabilities for their activities in the financial year
The Board of Directors proposes
to hold the following separate votes on the non-performance-related and the variable compensation of the Board of Directors and
the Executive Committee:
The Board of Directors proposes
that shareholders approve the total maximum amount of non-performance-related compensation for the members of the Board of Directors
covering the period from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019, i.e., CHF 547'000 (cash base compensation
plus social security costs).
The Board of Directors proposes
that shareholders approve the maximum grant of equity or equity linked instruments for the members of the Board of Directors from
1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019 with maximum value of CHF 515'000 (equity or equity linked instruments value plus
social security costs).
The Board of Directors proposes
that shareholders approve the total maximum amount of non-performance-related cash compensation for the members of the Executive
Committee from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019, i.e., CHF 1'807'000 (cash base compensation
plus social security costs).
The Board of Directors proposes
that shareholders approve the total maximum amount of variable compensation for the members of the Executive Committee for the
current year 2018, i.e., CHF 799'000 (cash compensation plus social security costs).
The Board of Directors proposes