UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
___________________
FORM 10-K
________________________________
ý ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13
OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008
¨ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from to
Commission file number: 0-19041
AMERICAN
BIOGENETIC SCIENCES, INC.
(Exact Name Of Registrant
As Specified In Its Charter)
| Delaware | 11-2655906 |
| (State of Incorporation) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
| 40 Wall Street, 28th Floor, New York, NY | 10005 |
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (ZIP Code) |
Registrant's Telephone Number, Including Area Code: (212) 400-7198
Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of The Act: Common Stock, $0.001
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 if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of
Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of the
registrant's knowledge, in the definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by
reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ¨
On December 31, 2008, the aggregate market value of the 65,749,909 common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $657,499 based on the asked price of the Registrants common stock on December 31, 2008. On December 31, 2008, the Registrant had 217,747,909 shares of common stock outstanding.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act) or a smaller reporting company .
| Large accelerated filer ¨ | Accelerated filer ¨ | Non-Accelerated filer ¨ | Smaller reporting company x |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes x No ¨
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| Item | Description | Page | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PART I | ||||||
ITEM 1. | DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS | 3 | ||||
| ITEM 1A. | RISK FACTORSA RELATED TO OUR BUSINESS | |||||
| ITEM 1B. | UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS | |||||
ITEM 2. | DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY | 11 | ||||
ITEM 3. | LEGAL PROCEEDINGS | 11 | ||||
ITEM 4. | SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS | 11 | ||||
| ||||||
ITEM 5. | MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS | 12 | ||||
| ITEM 6. | SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA | |||||
ITEM 7. | MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITIONS AND PLAN OF OPERATION | 12 | ||||
ITEM 8. | FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA | 13 | ||||
ITEM 9. | CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE | 13 | ||||
ITEM 9A. | CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES | 13 | ||||
| ITEM 9B. | OTHER INFORMATION | 14 | ||||
PART III | ||||||
ITEM 10. | DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE | 15 | ||||
ITEM 11. | EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION | 15 | ||||
ITEM 12. | SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED SHAREHOLDER MATTERS | 15 | ||||
ITEM 13. | CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE | 16 | ||||
ITEM 14. | PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES | 16 | ||||
ITEM 15. | EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES | 16 | ||||
Cautionary Statement regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report on Form 10-K includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Registrant has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about the Registrant that may cause its actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "could," "would," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "continue," or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and in the Registrant's other Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
PART I
ITEM 1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS Back to Table of Contents
Introduction
American Biogenetic Sciences, Inc., a Delaware corporation, is sometimes referred to herein as "we", "us", "our", "Company" and the "Registrant". The Registrant was formed in 1983 for the purpose of researching, developing and marketing cardiovascular and neurobiology products for commercial development and distributing vaccines. The Registrant's products were designed for in vitro and in vivo diagnostic procedures and therapeutic drugs, and its products had been identified for use in the treatment of epilepsy, migraine and mania, neurodegenerative diseases, coronary artery diseases and cancer. The Registrant commenced selling its products during the last quarter of 1997 but did not generate any sufficient revenues from operations to fund its operating expenses.
On September 19, 2002, the Registrant filed a petition under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York. On November 4, 2005, the Bankruptcy Court approved an order authorizing a change in control and provided that the Company, subsequent to the bankruptcy proceeding, is free and clear of all liens, claims and other obligations.
Change in Control following Bankruptcy
The material terms of the transaction confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court authorized Park Avenue Group to appoint new members to the Registrant's board of directors and management, and to change the Registrant's articles of incorporation with respect to the capital stock of the Company. On November 8, 2005, Park Avenue Group appointed Richard Rubi n to the board of directors of the Registrant, which then appointed Mr. Rubin to be chief executive officer and chief financial officer of the Registrant At present, Mr. Rubin is the Company's sole officer and director ("Management"). On November 29, 2005, the Registrant's board of directors approved an amendment to the Registrant's articles of incorporation to increase the number of authorized shares of capital stock to 910,000,000 shares, consisting of 900,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001, and 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001.
Business Objectives of the Registrant
As a result of the bankruptcy proceeding, the Registrant has no present operations. Management determined to direct its efforts and limited resources to pursue and effect a business combination.
Current trends
Management believes that as a result of the relative uncertainty in the United States equity markets over the past years, many privately-held companies have been closed off from the public market and traditional IPOs. During the past few years, many privately-held as well as public companies attempted to divest non-core assets and divisions and valuations of these assets and divisions have often decreased significantly. Therefore, Management believes that there are substantial business opportunities to effect attractive acquisitions. As a public entity with its shares of common stock registered under the Exchange Act and publicly trading, Management believes to be well positioned to identify target acquisitions and to effect a business combination in order to take advantage of these current trends.
Effecting a business combination
Prospective purchasers of the Registrant's common stock will invest in the Company without an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of any one or more business combinations. A business combination may involve the acquisition of, or merger with, a company which needs to raise substantial additional capital by means of being a publicly traded company, while avoiding what it may deem to be the adverse consequences of undertaking an initial public offering itself. These include time delays, significant expense, loss of voting control and compliance with various Federal and state securities laws. A potential business combination may involve a company which may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth.
The Registrant has not identified a target business or target industry
The Registrant's effort in identifying a prospective target business will not be limited to a particular industry and the Company may ultimately acquire a business in any industry Management deems appropriate. To date, the Registrant has not selected any target business or industry on which to concentrate its search for a business combination. While the Registrant intends to focus on target businesses in the United States, we are not limited to those entities and may consummate a business combination with a target business outside of the United States. Accordingly, there is no basis for investors in the Registrant's common stock to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business or the particular industry in which we may ultimately operate. To the extent we effect a business combination with a financially unstable company or an entity in its early stage of development or growth, including entities without established records of sales or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business and operations of financially unstable and early stage or potential emerging growth companies. In addition, to the extent that we effect a business combination with an entity in an industry characterized by a high level of risk, we may be affected by the currently unascertainable risks of that industry. An extremely high level of risk frequently characterizes many industries which experience rapid growth. In addition, although the Company's Management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular industry or target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
Sources of target businesses
The Registrant anticipates that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various sources, including broker-dealers, investment bankers, venture capitalists, bankers and other members of the financial community who may present solicited or unsolicited proposals. While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis, we may engage these firms in the future, in which event we may pay a finder's fee or other compensation. In no event, however, will we pay Management any finder's fee or other compensation for services rendered to us prior to or in connection with the consummation of a business combination.
Selection of a target business and structuring of a business combination
Management has voting control of 69.80% and will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting a prospective target business. In evaluating a prospective target business, our Management will consider, among other factors, the following:
- financial condition and
results of operation of the target company;
- growth potential;
- experience and skill of management and availability of additional personnel;
- capital requirements;
- competitive position;
- stage of development of the products, processes or services;
- degree of current or potential market acceptance of the products, processes or services;
- proprietary features and degree of intellectual property or other protection of the
products, processes or services;
- regulatory environment of the industry; and
- costs associated with effecting the business combination.
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular business combination will be based, to the extent relevant, on the above factors as well as other considerations deemed relevant by our Management in effecting a business combination consistent with our business objective. In evaluating a prospective target business, we will conduct a due diligence review which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and inspection of facilities, as well as review of financial and other information which will be made available to us.
The time and costs required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete the business combination cannot presently be ascertained with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which a business combination is not ultimately completed will result in a loss to us.
Probable lack of business diversification
We may seek to effect business combinations with more than one target business, it is probable that we will have the ability to effect only a single business combination. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be entirely dependent upon the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations with entities operating in multiple industries or multiple areas of a single industry, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
- subject us to numerous
economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a
substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent
to a business combination; and
- result in our dependency upon the development or market acceptance of a single or
limited number of products, processes or services.
Limited ability to evaluate the target business' management
Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting a business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of the target business' management will prove to be correct. In addition, we cannot assure you that the future management will have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company intending to embark on a program of business development. Furthermore, the future role of our directors, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that our sole director will remain associated in some capacity with us following a business combination, it is unlikely that he will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to a business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that our director will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business, we expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources than the Registrant and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous potential target businesses that may be interested in effecting a business combination with a current, reporting public company, Management believes that we may have only very limited ability to compete in acquiring certain sizable target businesses because of our limited available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Further, any of these obligations may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. Our management believes, however, that our status as a public entity and potential access to the United States public equity markets may give us a competitive advantage over privately-held entities having a similar business objective as us in acquiring a target business with significant growth potential on favorable terms.
If we succeed in effecting a business combination, there will be, in all likelihood, intense competition from competitors of the target business. In particular, certain industries which experience rapid growth frequently attract an increasingly larger number of competitors, including competitors with increasingly greater financial, marketing, technical and other resources than the initial competitors in the industry. The degree of competition characterizing the industry of any prospective target business cannot presently be ascertained. We cannot assure you that, subsequent to a business combination, we will have the resources to compete effectively, especially to the extent that the target business is in a high-growth industry.
Employees
Richard Rubin, is our chief executive officer and chief financial officer. Mr. Rubin is not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week and intend to devote only as much time as he deems necessary to the Company's affairs. The amount of time he will devote in any time period will vary based on the availability of suitable target businesses to investigate. We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the consummation of a business combination.
Conflicts of Interest
The Company's Management is not required to commit its full time to the Company's affairs. As a result, pursuing new business opportunities may require a greater period of time than if Management would devote his full time to the Company's affairs. Management is not precluded from serving as officer or director of any other entity that is engaged in business activities similar to those of the Registrant. In the future, Management may become associated or affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those we intend to conduct. In such event, Management may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. In the event that the Company's Management has multiple business affiliations, it may have legal obligations to present certain business opportunities to multiple entities. In the event that a conflict of interest shall arise, Management will consider factors such as reporting status, availability of audited financial statements, current capitalization and the laws of the jurisdictions of the target entities. If several business opportunities or operating entities approach Management with respect to a business combination, Management will consider the foregoing factors as well as the preferences of the incumbent management of the operating company. However, Management will act in what it believes will be in the best interests of the shareholders of the Registrant. The Registrant shall not enter into a transaction with a target business that is affiliated with Management.
Periodic Reporting and Audited Financial Statements
We have registered our securities under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual and quarterly reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent public accountants.
We will not acquire a target business if audited financial statements cannot be obtained for the target business. Our Management believes that the requirement of having available audited financial statements for the target business will limit the pool of potential target businesses available for acquisition.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS RELATED TO OUR BUSINESS
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