Exicure, INC.: management transactions · United States · SEC (Form 4)

About Exicure, INC.

Exicure, Inc. (ticker: Nasdaq XCUR) is a United States-listed biotechnology company, quoted on the NASDAQ market in the United States and headquartered in Redwood City, California. For French-speaking investors, Exicure should be viewed as a highly speculative small-cap biotech with a materially evolving corporate profile rather than a conventional late-stage drug developer. The company was founded in 2011 and initially built its strategy around nucleic-acid therapeutics, with a research platform focused on RNA-targeting approaches against validated biological targets. In September 2022, however, Exicure disclosed a major workforce reduction, suspended preclinical activities, halted all R&D, and began exploring strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value. Following that restructuring, Exicure’s competitive positioning became that of a transitional biotech platform focused on monetizing and reworking legacy assets while rebuilding an operating base. Its historical assets have included cavrotolimod, a clinical-stage immuno-oncology program, and a preclinical SCN9A candidate for neuropathic pain. More recently, in 2025, the company acquired GPCR Therapeutics USA Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology business whose lead program is being evaluated for stem cell mobilization in multiple myeloma, sickle cell disease, and potential support applications in cell and gene therapy. This acquisition marked a meaningful shift in the company’s operating structure and contributed to renewed research and development activity. Geographically, Exicure remains a U.S. company with operations centered in California, United States. Its business footprint is primarily domestic, although recent financing and control transactions involved strategic counterparties from Asia. In late 2024, the company announced a capital raise that included an $8.7 million second investment from HiTron Systems, following an initial $1.3 million investment, alongside board and management changes tied to a change-of-control transaction. Those steps were intended to support the company’s efforts to regain Nasdaq compliance and preserve listing status. Recent corporate news highlights the company’s fragile but active turnaround situation. Exicure said in 2025 that it had regained compliance with Nasdaq filing requirements after catching up on periodic reports. Its full-year 2025 results, released in March 2026, indicated limited cash resources and a likely need for additional financing to fund ongoing operations, continue strategic reviews, and pursue value-creation options. The same release also reflected the impact of the GPCR acquisition, with renewed R&D spending and a narrower net loss year over year. Overall, XCUR remains an event-driven biotechnology name with meaningful upside optionality, but it also carries elevated financing, execution, and listing-risk considerations.