Okay, You guys convinced me. Here is the letter. I was pissed off so forgot to write my name on it, but will do that in my next correspondence.
<Please do me the courtesy of telling me your actual name when you send
notes looking for an exchange of information and ideas.
In the meantime, recognizing that you are feeling angry by the market
action on small biotech generally, and GTCB in particular, please allow
me the opportunity to share some thoughts with you that come from all
the communication that we have already engaged in with the public.
Over just the last 6 months, GTC has out licensed the fibrinogen program
to Pharming, entered a strategic relationship with OVATION for the
development of ATryn(r) in the US, completed the BLA submission,
obtained priority review status with the FDA, advanced the review
process through the inspections of our clinical sites, reported second
and third quarter financial results with both quarters showing improving
revenue and lower net costs with respect to the same periods in 2007,
reported on issues with Nasdaq listing requirements and LEO's internal
strategic review decision on ATryn, and obtained an important commitment
from LFB (both a strategic collaborator and an existing investor that
sits on our board) to provide bridge financing to get us past the FDA
action date. All this has been accomplished in an environment of
severely deteriorating financial markets that have battered the small
biotech industry.
In addition, we have stated that there have been small sales of ATryn in
the EU as well as work on the DIC study and that we feel LFB has the
capability to do more as we work to transition this effort from LEO.
Your suggestions for cutting costs have also been addressed in our
earlier conference calls. While many early stage and discovery oriented
companies can cut efforts without severely affecting their lead programs
in the short term, we are a commercial production operation under
regulatory review. Cost cutting that would be meaningful would lead to
gutting the very infrastructure which is required for product approval
and support for the partnered programs that are bringing in revenue.
Your thoughts on symbolic reductions of senior management base salaries
has not been considered since it may lead to a loss of the talent and
capabilities that we are depending on to reach our strategic goals.
Senior management has embraced receiving primarily stock for the bonuses
that recognize our meeting GTC's operating and strategic goals. These
are reported as cash values although both stock grants and option awards
are all significantly underwater.
GTC will continue to utilize the progress of our product programs and
strengths of our strategic relationships to chart our way through the
challenges we face. Ultimately, it will be the success of the products
that bring GTC through to commercialization. Our record of real
accomplishments and meeting emerging issues in a rational way is
difficult for any other small biotech company to match and many are not
- being forced into shut down, distressed sales, bankruptcy, or asset
sales that result in cash but no remaining significant pipeline.
We remain focused on bringing the company, and ultimately our
shareholders, through to becoming a larger commercial enterprise where
we can more meaningfully grow to add more intrinsic value than exists
today.>
AI
