FATE THERAPEUTICS INC (FATE): restructuring charge — Fate Therapeutics ends Janssen deal, cuts workforce to 220, discontinues four NK programs

the employment of Mark Plavsic, Ph.D., D.V.M., the Company’s Chief Technical Officer, is expected to terminate effective as of March 6, 2023.

On January 3, 2023, Fate Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) received notice of termination from Janssen Biotech, Inc. (“Janssen”) of the Collaboration and Option Agreement dated April 2, 2020 by and between the Company and Janssen (the “Collaboration Agreement”), pursuant to which Janssen and the Company had agreed to collaborate to develop iPSC-derived CAR NK- and CAR T-cell product candidates for the treatment of cancer.

On January 5, 2023, the Company announced the prioritization of its current and near-term clinical programs and development plans, including advancement of a second-generation CD19-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) natural killer (NK) cell program for hematologic malignancies and severe autoimmune disorders, its FT576 CAR NK cell program for multiple myeloma, its FT819 CAR T-cell program for B-cell lymphoma, and its FT825/ONO-8250 CAR T-cell program for solid tumors under its collaboration with ONO Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; and discontinuation of its FT516, FT596, FT538, and FT536 NK cell programs. The restructuring plan will result in a reduction in the Company’s workforce to approximately 220 employees, and is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2023. These changes are expected to extend the Company’s cash runway through 2025. The Company estimates that it will incur charges of approximately $15 million for severance and other employee termination-related cost