UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): November 8, 2006
MEDICINOVA, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 000-51133 | 33-0927979 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) |
4350 La Jolla Village Drive, Suite 950
San Diego, CA 92122
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (858) 373-1500
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| Item 5.02 | Departure of Directors or Principal Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Principal Officers. |
Chief Financial Officer
On November 8, 2006, the Board of Directors of MediciNova, Inc. (the “Registrant”) appointed Shintaro Asako as Chief Financial Officer of the Registrant.
Before becoming Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Asako served as the Registrant’s Vice President, Accounting and Administration from November 2005 to November 2006. Mr. Asako served as the Registrant’s Vice President, Accounting and Financial Reporting from July 2005 to October 2005. From October 2004 to July 2005, Mr. Asako was an audit senior manager at KPMG LLP, where he provided a variety of audit and business consulting services to multinational clients and industries including pharmaceutical, manufacturing, distribution and freight-forwarding and transportation. Mr. Asako was also responsible for the development and expansion of KPMG’s Japanese practice in the Orange County and San Diego areas. Prior to becoming audit senior manager, Mr. Asako held the positions of supervisory senior auditor from June 2002 to March 2003 and audit manager from April 2003 to September 2004. Before joining KPMG, Mr. Asako spent four years with Arthur Andersen LLP providing audit and tax advisory services. Mr. Asako is a graduate of the Leventhal School of Accounting at the University of Southern California. Mr. Asako is a certified public accountant of the state of California and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Attached as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety is the press release issued by the Registrant on November 9, 2006.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits.
| Exhibit | Description | |
| 99.1 | Press Release issued November 9, 2006. |
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Dated: November 14, 2006.
| MEDICINOVA, INC. | ||
| By: | /s/ Shintaro Asako | |
| Shintaro Asako | ||
| Chief Financial Officer | ||
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EXHIBIT INDEX
| Exhibit No. | Description | |
| 99.1 | Press Release issued November 9, 2006. |
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Exhibit 99.1
 |
CONTACT: Shintaro Asako Vice President and CFO MediciNova, Inc. Phone: 858-373-1500 E-mail : info@medicinova.com |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MediciNova Appoints Shintaro Asako as Chief Financial Officer
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – November 9, 2006 – MediciNova, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company that is publicly traded on the Hercules Market of the Osaka Securities Exchange (Code Number: 4875), today announced the appointment of Shintaro Asako as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Asako will report directly to Yuichi Iwaki, M.D., Ph.D., Executive Chairman and CEO of MediciNova, who also has served as acting CFO since September 30, 2005.
“The role of chief financial officer is one of our most strategic management positions. We are confident that Shintaro possesses the skills and expertise necessary to develop and implement financial strategies that can support our company’s anticipated growth and maturation,” said Dr. Iwaki. “This is an exciting time in our company’s development as our clinical pipeline is expanding and advancing and we look forward to achieving a listing on the Nasdaq Global Market. We believe that Shintaro has the depth and breadth of experience that will enable MediciNova to operate efficiently as a potentially dual-listed public company in the US and Japanese equity markets.”
Mr. Asako has broad and diverse financial management expertise. He joined MediciNova in July 2005. Before becoming CFO, Mr. Asako served as Vice President, Accounting and Administration from November 2005 to November 2006 and Vice President, Accounting and Financial Reporting from July 2005 to October 2006.
Before joining MediciNova, he was an audit senior manager at KPMG LLP (KPMG), where he provided a variety of audit and business consulting services to multinational clients and industries including pharmaceutical, manufacturing, distribution, and freight-forwarding and transportation. Mr. Asako was also responsible for the development and expansion of KPMG’s Japanese practice in the Orange County and San Diego areas. Before joining KPMG, he spent four years with Arthur Andersen LLP providing audit and tax advisory services. Mr. Asako is a graduate of the Leventhal School of Accounting at the University of Southern California. Mr. Asako is licensed as a certified public accountant in California and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
About MediciNova
MediciNova, Inc. is a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company focused on accelerating the global development and commercialization of innovative pharmaceutical products. MediciNova’s pipeline, which includes several compounds in clinical testing, targets a variety of prevalent medical conditions, including asthma, status asthmaticus, multiple sclerosis, interstitial cystitis, cancer, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, preterm labor, urinary incontinence and thrombotic disorders. For more information on MediciNova, Inc., please visit www.medicinova.com.
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