Exicure, Inc. announced the preliminary court approval of a settlement to resolve stockholder derivative litigation alleging fiduciary breaches related to internal controls and statements about drug candidate XCUR-FXN, requiring corporate governance reforms and a $675,000 fee payment.
Key takeaways
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois preliminarily approved a settlement of stockholder derivative claims on March 19, 2026, resolving litigation without admission of wrongdoing.
The settlement requires Exicure to adopt and maintain specific corporate governance reforms outlined in Exhibit A to the Stipulation for at least four years.
Defendants' insurers will pay $675,000 in attorneys' fees and expenses to Plaintiffs' Counsel, subject to court approval, with service awards of up to $2,000 each for plaintiffs from that amount.
A final settlement hearing is scheduled for June 2, 2026, where the court will consider approval, and stockholders of record as of March 18, 2026, may object by May 12, 2026.
The derivative actions alleged breaches of fiduciary duties from January 7, 2021, through December 10, 2021, concerning internal controls and public statements about XCUR-FXN, which defendants denied.