VolitionRx Limited (VNRX) DEF 14ADefinitive proxy

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Filed by the Registrant ☒

Filed by a Party other than the Registrant ☐

Check the appropriate box:

_____________________________________________________

(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)

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VOLITIONRX LIMITED

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

To Be Held on Monday, June 13, 2022

To Our Stockholders:

Notice is hereby given that the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, or the Annual Meeting, of VolitionRx Limited, which we refer to as VolitionRx, the Company, we or us, will be held at 93-95 Gloucester Place, London, W1U 6JQ, United Kingdom, at 11:00 a.m. LST on Monday, June 13, 2022, for the following purposes:

The Company’s board of directors recommends that you vote “FOR” the election of each of the director nominees named in Proposal 1, and “FOR” Proposals 2, 3, and 4.

The Company’s board of directors has fixed the close of business on April 18, 2022 as the Record Date for the determination of stockholders that are entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof. Only stockholders of record, and holders of shares in street name as represented by a bank or broker statement certifying the number of shares in their possession, as of the close of business on the Record Date are entitled to notice of and to vote at this Annual Meeting and any postponements or adjournments.

We intend to hold our Annual Meeting in person. However, we continue to monitor coronavirus (COVID-19) developments and the related recommendations and protocols issued by public health authorities and governments. The health and well-being of our employees and stockholders is a high priority. Accordingly, if we determine that it is not possible or advisable to hold the Annual Meeting in person, we will announce alternative arrangements for the meeting, which may include a change in venue or holding the meeting solely by means of remote communication. We will announce any such change and the details on how to participate by press release, which will be available on our website at https://ir.volition.com and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. If you are planning to attend the Annual Meeting in person, please check our website prior to the meeting date.

Your vote is very important. Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we encourage you to read the Proxy Statement and submit your proxy and voting instructions as soon as possible. For specific instructions on how to vote your shares, please refer to the instructions on the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials you received in the mail, the section entitled How to Vote in the Proxy Statement or, if you requested to receive printed proxy materials, your enclosed proxy card.

Approximate Date of Mailing of Notice of

Internet Availability of Proxy Materials: 

May 2, 2022

VOLITIONRX LIMITED

13215 Bee Cave Parkway

Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B

Austin, Texas 78738

Telephone: +1 (646) 650-1351

PROXY STATEMENT

FOR THE ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

To Be Held on Monday, June 13, 2022

GENERAL INFORMATION

VolitionRx Limited has made this Proxy Statement, as well as the Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, or collectively, the Proxy Materials, available to you on the Internet or, upon your request, in paper or e-mail form, in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the board of directors of VolitionRx Limited for the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, or the Annual Meeting, to be held on Monday, June 13, 2022, and any adjournment or postponements of the Annual Meeting. In addition to the Proxy Materials, proxies may be solicited personally or by telephone, mail, facsimile or other electronic means. Directors, officers and employees will not be paid any additional compensation for soliciting proxies, but Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will be paid its customary fee of approximately $9,000, exclusive of printing and mailing fees, and Georgeson, LLC, a proxy solicitation firm, will be paid a fee of $10,000, plus disbursements. We will, upon request, also reimburse brokerage firms and others for their reasonable expenses in forwarding solicitation material to the beneficial owners of stock. The cost of solicitation will be borne by the Company.

The Company is taking advantage of the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, that allow us to furnish our Proxy Materials over the Internet to our stockholders rather than in paper form. We believe that this delivery process will expedite our stockholders’ receipt of our Proxy Materials, reduce the environmental impact of the Annual Meeting and lower the costs of printing and distributing our Proxy Materials. Accordingly, you will receive a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, or the Notice, which we expect to mail on or about May 2, 2022. You may request receipt of our Proxy Materials in paper or e-mail form by following the instructions on the Notice.

In this Proxy Statement, except as otherwise indicated by the context, references to “Company,” “VolitionRx,” “Volition,” “we,” “us,” and “our” are references to VolitionRx Limited and its wholly owned subsidiaries, Singapore Volition Pte. Limited, a Singapore-registered company, or Singapore Volition, Belgian Volition SRL, a Belgium-registered company, or Belgian Volition, Volition Diagnostics UK Limited, a company registered in the United Kingdom, or Volition Diagnostics, Volition Germany GmbH (formerly Octamer GmbH), a company with limited liability organized under the laws of Germany, or Volition Germany, Volition Global Services SRL, a Belgium-registered company, or Volition Global Services, and Volition America, Inc., a Delaware corporation, or Volition America, as well as majority-owned subsidiary Volition Veterinary Diagnostics Development LLC, a Texas limited liability company, or Volition Vet. Additionally, in this Proxy Statement we use the term “Share Exchange Agreement” to refer to the share exchange agreement with Singapore Volition and the former shareholders of Singapore Volition dated September 26, 2011, pursuant to which we acquired Singapore Volition through an exchange of shares with the former Singapore Volition shareholders effective October 6, 2011.

ABOUT THE MEETING

We are holding our Annual Meeting at 93-95 Gloucester Place, London, W1U 6JQ, United Kingdom, on Monday, June 13, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. LST. At our Annual Meeting, our stockholders will act upon the matters outlined herein. In addition, our management will report on our performance during the 2021 fiscal year and respond to questions from stockholders.

We intend to hold our Annual Meeting in person. However, we continue to monitor coronavirus, or COVID-19, developments and the related recommendations and protocols issued by public health authorities and governments. The health and well-being of our employees and stockholders is a high priority. Accordingly, if we determine that it is not possible or advisable to hold the Annual Meeting in person, we will announce alternative arrangements for the meeting, which may include a change in venue or holding the meeting solely by means of remote communication. We will announce any such change and the details on how to participate by press release, which will be available on our website at https://ir.volition.com and filed with the SEC. If you are planning to attend the Annual Meeting in person, please check our website prior to the meeting date.

While the Company plans to take precautionary measures, including certain of those recommended by governmental authorities, such as “social distancing,” at this year’s Annual Meeting to protect the health and safety of attendees and prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Company will not be able to provide attendees, including stockholders, with personal protective equipment, such as face masks or gloves, and we encourage you to bring your own.

Attendance at the Annual Meeting will be limited to stockholders of the Company. Stockholders will be required to furnish valid identification and proof of ownership of the Company’s common stock before being admitted to the Annual Meeting. Stockholders holding shares in street name are requested to bring a statement from the bank, broker or other holder of record confirming their ownership in the Company’s common stock. For directions to the Annual Meeting, you may contact the Company’s Corporate Secretary, Rodney Rootsaert, by writing to VolitionRx’s principal executive offices at 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, or by telephone at +1 (646) 650-1351.

VOTING INFORMATION

All shares represented by properly executed proxies received by the board of directors pursuant to this solicitation will be voted in accordance with the holder’s directions specified on the proxy. If no directions have been specified using the Internet voting site, toll-free number or by marking the appropriate places on a Proxy Card, the shares will be voted in accordance with the board of directors’ recommendations, which are:

You may either vote “FOR” or “WITHHOLD” authority to vote for each director nominee. You can vote “FOR” or “AGAINST” (or “ABSTAIN” from voting on) any of the other Proposals. Your vote on any one of these Proposals will not affect your vote on any of the other Proposals.

When using Internet or telephone voting, the voting systems will verify that you are a stockholder through the use of a company number for VolitionRx and a control number unique to you. If you vote by Internet or telephone, please do not also mail a Proxy Card.

If you plan to vote in person at the Annual Meeting, please bring valid identification. Even if you currently plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we recommend that you also submit your proxy so that your vote will be counted if you later decide not to attend the Annual Meeting.

Record Date

You may vote all shares that you owned as of April 18, 2022, which is the Record Date for the Annual Meeting. As of April 18, 2022, we had 53,790,261 shares of common stock issued and outstanding held of record by approximately 128 stockholders. Each share of common stock is entitled to one vote on each matter properly brought before the Annual Meeting.

A complete list of the stockholders entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting will be open to examination by any stockholder for purposes germane to the meeting, during normal business hours for ten days prior to the date of the Annual Meeting at the Company’s offices at 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738. Please be aware that due to continuing health and safety concerns from the COVID-19 pandemic, at this point, we do not know if our offices will be open in advance of or during the Annual Meeting. If you wish to inspect the stockholder list, please contact the Company’s Corporate Secretary, Rodney Rootsaert, by telephone at +1 (646) 650-1351.

Ownership of Shares

If your shares are registered directly in your name, you are the holder of record of these shares, and we are sending the Notice or, if requested, paper or e-mail copies of the Proxy Materials directly to you. As the holder of record, you have the right to give your proxy directly to us or to vote in person at the Annual Meeting.

If you hold your shares in a brokerage account or through a bank or other holder of record, you hold the shares in “street name,” and your broker, bank or other holder of record is sending the Notice or Proxy Materials to you. As a holder in street name, you have the right to direct your broker, bank or other holder of record how to vote by filling out a voting instruction form that accompanies your Proxy Materials. Regardless of how you hold your shares, we invite you to attend the Annual Meeting.

If you receive more than one Notice or set of Proxy Materials, your shares may be registered in more than one name or in different accounts. Please follow the voting instructions to ensure that all of your shares are voted.

How to Vote

Your Vote Is Important. We encourage you to vote promptly. You may vote in any of the following ways:

By Internet – www.proxyvote.com: Use the Internet to submit your proxy by going to www.proxyvote.com and following the instructions on how to complete an electronic proxy card up until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on June 12, 2022, the day before the Annual Meeting. You will need the 12-digit control number included on your Notice or your Proxy Card in order to vote by Internet.

By Telephone – 1-800-690-6903: Use any touch-tone telephone to submit your proxy by dialing 1-800-690-6903 up until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on June 12, 2022, the day before the Annual Meeting. You will need the 12-digit control number included on your Notice or your Proxy Card in order to vote by telephone.

By Mail: You may request a paper copy of the Proxy Materials from us by following the instructions on your Notice. When you receive the Proxy Card, mark your selection on the Proxy Card, date and sign your name exactly as it appears on your Proxy Card. Mail the Proxy Card in the postage-paid envelope that will be provided to you.

At the Annual Meeting: If you vote your shares now it will not limit your right to change your vote at the Annual Meeting if you attend in person. If you hold your shares in street name, you must obtain a proxy, executed in your favor, from your bank, broker or other holder of record, if you wish to vote your shares at the Annual Meeting.

All shares that have been properly voted and not revoked will be voted at the meeting. If you vote using the Internet voting site or the toll-free number, or by signing and returning a Proxy Card in each case without any voting instructions, your shares will be voted as the board of directors recommends.

Revocation of Proxies

You can revoke your proxy (or voting instructions if you hold your shares in street name) at any time before your shares are voted at the Annual Meeting if you: (1) send a written notice by mail to our Corporate Secretary indicating that you want to revoke your proxy by writing to VolitionRx Limited, 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, Attention: Rodney Rootsaert, Corporate Secretary; (2) vote after delivery of your proxy and before the Annual Meeting by using the Internet voting site or toll-free number or deliver to our Corporate Secretary a duly executed Proxy Card bearing a later date, which revokes all previous proxies; or (3) attend the Annual Meeting in person and, at the meeting, give written notice of revocation of your proxy to the Corporate Secretary of the Annual Meeting prior to the voting of your proxy and vote your shares in person, although your attendance at the meeting will not by itself revoke your proxy.

Quorum and Required Vote

Quorum

We will have a quorum and will be able to conduct the business of the Annual Meeting if the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock entitled to vote are present at the meeting, either in person or by proxy. In determining whether we have a quorum, we count abstentions and broker non-votes as present and entitled to vote.

Vote Required for Proposals

Dissenters’ Rights

Under Delaware law, stockholders are not entitled to dissenters’ rights of appraisal on any Proposal referred to herein.

Cumulative Voting

Stockholders shall not be entitled to cumulate votes with respect to voting on the election of directors or any other Proposal referred to herein.

Voting Results

Preliminary voting results will be announced at the Annual Meeting. Final voting results will be published in a current report on Form 8-K that we expect to file with the SEC within four business days after the Annual Meeting. If final voting results are not available to us in time to file a Form 8-K within four business days after the Annual Meeting, we intend to file a Form 8‑K to publish preliminary results and, within four business days after the final results are known to us, file an amended Form 8-K to publish the final results.

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

The following table sets forth certain information concerning the number of shares of our common stock owned beneficially as of April 18, 2022, by: (i) each of our directors; (ii) each of our named executive officers; (iii) all of our directors and executive officers as a group; and (iv) each person or group known by us to beneficially own more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock.

We have determined beneficial ownership in accordance with the rules of the SEC and the information is not necessarily indicative of beneficial ownership for any other purpose. Under the rules of the SEC, a person is deemed to be a beneficial owner of a security if that person has or shares voting power, which includes the power to vote or to direct the voting of such security, or investment power, which includes the power to dispose of or to direct the disposition of such security. A person is also deemed to be a beneficial owner of any securities of which the person has a right to acquire beneficial ownership within 60 days. Under these rules more than one person may be deemed a beneficial owner of the same securities and a person may be deemed to be a beneficial owner of securities as to which such person has no economic interest.

Unless otherwise indicated below, to the best of our knowledge (i) each beneficial owner named in the table has the sole voting and sole investment power with respect to all shares beneficially owned, subject to community property laws where applicable, and (ii) the address of such beneficial owner is 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738.

Changes in Control

We are not aware of any arrangements that have resulted, or may at a subsequent date result, in a change in control of the Company.

DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Identification of Directors and Executive Officers

The following table sets forth the names and ages of the Company’s directors and executive officers as of the Record Date, except as otherwise noted:

The background and business experience during the past five years of the persons listed above are as follows:

CAMERON REYNOLDS serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer and is a director of the Company. Information regarding Mr. Reynolds is provided under Proposal 1 – Election of Directors of this Proxy Statement.

TERIG HUGHES serves as our Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. In addition, Mr. Hughes was appointed as Director of both Singapore Volition and Volition Global Services on September 1, 2021. Mr. Hughes has over 25 years of accounting, finance and business management experience gained through an international career spanning the United States, Europe and Asia. Mr. Hughes joined the Company from AUM Biosciences Pte. Ltd., a fast-growing biotechnology company focused on developing novel drugs for cancer treatment, where he was the Chief Financial Officer based in Singapore, and oversaw all aspects of business and finance, from initial start-up in 2018 through to first revenue in 2020. Prior to 2018, Mr. Hughes held a number of senior finance and business leadership positions at Elsevier, a division of RELX Group plc (formerly Reed Elsevier), an FTSE 100 company. From 2014 to 2017, Mr. Hughes was the regional Managing Director of RELX Group plc for India and Southeast Asia, overseeing all aspects of the business including sales, marketing, and product development. From 2006 to 2014, he served as the company’s Finance Director for Asia Pacific, during which he managed and oversaw accounting and finance functions, including financial planning and analysis. During this period he also oversaw a successful finance transformation project, which included systems implementation, transition to a shared-services model, and outsourcing of various work streams, as well as a number of mergers and acquisitions projects in China. From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Hughes was the Vice President Finance of Elsevier’s US Journals and Pharma Communications Division where he provided commercial support to senior management, oversaw implementation of internal control standards as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and managed the annual pricing process. Mr. Hughes holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Law from De Montfort University, Leicester in the United Kingdom.

RODNEY ROOTSAERT serves as our Corporate Secretary. Prior to the completion of the transactions under the Share Exchange Agreement, he was the Administration and Legal Officer of Singapore Volition, a position he held since August 6, 2010. Mr. Rootsaert became a Director of Singapore Volition on December 15, 2015. He has been a Manager and Secretary of Belgian Volition since October 4, 2010, was appointed Director of Volition Diagnostics on November 13, 2015, was appointed Secretary and Treasurer of Volition Vet on August 7, 2019, and was additionally appointed as Secretary of Volition America on November 16, 2021. Mr. Rootsaert served as director and corporate secretary of Mining House Ltd. between 2007 and 2018. His responsibilities included ensuring compliance with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements. From 2007 until 2011, Mr. Rootsaert served as corporate secretary for Magellan Copper and Gold Plc., where his duties included maintaining and preparing company documents, accounts and contracts. Mr. Rootsaert holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Western Australia.

DR. JASON TERRELL serves as our Chief Medical Officer. Effective January 1, 2016, Dr. Terrell was appointed to the position of Chief Medical Officer on a full-time basis, having previously served in a part-time capacity in this position since March 2013. Dr. Terrell was appointed Director of Volition America on February 3, 2017, has served as its President since November 16, 2021 and additionally served as Chief Executive Officer of Volition America between February 3, 2017 and November 16, 2021. Since May 28, 2019, Dr. Terrell has also served as Manager of Volition Vet, and served as its Vice President between August 7, 2019 and April 30, 2021. Since February 2017, Dr. Terrell has also concurrently served as both a director and Chief Medical Diagnostics Officer of Generex Biotechnology Corporation (OTCMKTS: GNBT), a publicly held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing or acquiring technologies that help pharmaceutical companies discover and develop medicines, and additionally as the non-executive chairman of the board of directors of Kiromic BioPharma, Inc. (a private company) until September 2019. Since February 2017, Dr. Terrell has served as Affiliate Faculty in the Department of Oncology at The University of Texas Medical School at Austin. Between January 2013 and October 2015, Dr. Terrell served on the board of directors of CDEX Inc., a company developing drug validation technology, and between January 2012 and October 2015, as Medical Director of CDEX Inc. In addition, prior to joining Volition full-time, Dr. Terrell has built and sold multiple private diagnostic laboratories and currently serves as a National Franchise Corporate Medical Director for Any Lab Test Now, giving him oversight of over 70 franchises in 14 states. Dr. Terrell is a Texas-based doctor and earned a B.S. in Biochemistry from Hardin-Simmons University, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude, receiving the Holland Medal of Honor as the top graduate in the School of Science and Mathematics. He then attended the University of Texas at Houston Medical School and affiliate MD Anderson Cancer Center to become Doctor of Medicine. He undertook his General Medicine Internship, and Anatomic and Clinical Pathology Residency at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. In February 2014, Dr. Terrell was recipient of the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from Hardin-Simmons University. In October 2019, Dr. Terrell received the Pathfinder Award for Outstanding Leadership from The University of Texas Shepperd Leadership Institute. Throughout his career, Dr. Terrell has held medical licenses in 14 states across the United States and has expertise in both clinical medicine and the laboratory diagnostics business. He has a strong grounding in diagnostics and product commercialization and has both executive and board directorship experience with publicly traded companies in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.

DR. JACOB MICALLEF serves as our Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Micallef previously served as a Director of Belgian Volition between August 10, 2011 and March 31, 2016. Prior to the Share Exchange Agreement, he served as Chief Scientific Officer of Belgian Volition from October 11, 2010 to December 31, 2014, but was not otherwise involved with Singapore Volition. Dr. Micallef joined Cronos Therapeutics Limited, or Cronos, in 2004 and, in 2006, Cronos was listed in the U.K. on the AIM, becoming Valirx plc, or Valirx (AIM:VAL). Dr. Micallef continued to work as Technical Officer for Valirx, where he in-licensed the Nucleosomics^TM technology and co-founded ValiBio SA, which is now Belgian Volition. From 2004 to 2007, he taught “science and enterprise” to science research workers from four universities at CASS Business School before joining Cronos. In 2001, Dr. Micallef co-founded Gene Expression Technologies, after getting his M.B.A in 1999, where he successfully led the development of the chemistry of the GeneICE technology and implemented the manufacture of GeneICE molecules. He also played a major role in business development and procured a GeneICE contract with Bayer AG. Over a 15-year period, starting in 1985, Dr. Micallef worked for the World Health Organization, or WHO. While working for WHO, Dr. Micallef developed new diagnostic products in the areas of reproductive health and cancer. In 1990, he commenced development of a new diagnostic technology platform for WHO which was launched in 1992 and supported 13 tests. Dr. Micallef also initiated and implemented in-house manufacture (previously outsourced to Abbott Diagnostics Inc.) and world-wide distribution of these products for WHO. Also in 1990, he started a “not-for-profit” WHO company, Immunometrics Ltd., which marketed and distributed those diagnostic products worldwide. Dr. Micallef has over 20 years of experience in research and development and in the management of early stage biotechnical companies, including the manufacture of biotechnology products and the establishment of manufacturing operations.

DR. SALVATORE THOMAS BUTERA serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Volition Veterinary. Dr. Butera previously served as a Director of the Company between December 1, 2020 and March 25, 2021, before resigning in order to prepare to assume the role of Chief Executive Officer of Volition Veterinary, effective May 1, 2021. Between 2016 and April 2021, Dr. Butera served as Business Development Director at Veterinary Centers of America, or VCA, part of Mars Veterinary Health, or Mars, and was actively involved in business development roles with Mars, leading divisions such as Pet Partners, LLC, or PPL, Banfield Pet Hospitals and VCA, and serving as Co-Founder, Board Member and Chief Medical Officer of PPL prior to its acquisition by Mars. Dr. Butera received his B.A. from Fairfield University and his D.V.M. from the University of Missouri Veterinary School.

DR. JASMINE KWAY serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Singapore Volition. Dr. Kway previously served as Singapore Volition’s Vice President of Asia from January 2017 until June 2018. Prior to joining Singapore Volition, during 2016 Dr. Kway served as Chief Executive Officer of intellectual property practice at RHT i-Assets Advisory, or RHTiAA, one of the leading companies of the RHT Group of Companies and RHT Holdings, a Singapore-headquartered integrated leading professional services company providing professional services in Asia. While at RHTiAA, Dr. Kway was focused on managing buy-side and sell-side clients globally in technology/intellectual property transactions, business development, and fund raising. Prior to RHTiAA, Dr. Kway worked in both the private and public sectors, including as Executive Vice President, Business Development at Transpacific IP Group Limited from 2010 to 2015, and as Director of Industry Liaison of the National University of Singapore from 2005 to 2010. In these positions, Dr. Kway formulated and implemented national intellectual property policies, corporate intellectual property strategies and management, intellectual property and technology development, commercialization, fundraising, and investment.

GAEL FORTERRE serves as our Chief Commercial Officer. He has over fifteen years of experience investing in and scaling fast growing companies. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Forterre acted as a consultant to Ucroo Incorporated, or Ucroo (now Pathify Holdings, Inc.), a SaaS EdTech company, between August 2017 and December 2017, served as its Chief Financial Officer between January 2018 and December 2018, and as its Chief Executive Officer between January 2019 and December 2020, during which period he supervised the launch of its product suite and tripled sales two years in a row. Mr. Forterre also served as a board member of Ucroo between August 2019 and March 2021, and as a board member of ARTICLE22, a designed-focused social enterprise that he co-founded in 2013, between July 2013 and June 2021. In October 2013, Mr. Forterre launched Armori Capital Management LLC, for which he conducted a series of investments on behalf of family offices and institutional investors, and actively supported the growth of its portfolio companies. Between 2005 and 2012, Mr. Forterre worked for BNP Paribas in the Corporate and Investment Banking Division, in both New York and Paris, where he was selected to join the top talent program. Mr. Forterre holds a Master’s degree in finance from Sorbonne Paris I and a double MBA from both Columbia Business School and the London Business School.

DR. GAETAN MICHEL serves as our Chief Operating Officer. In addition, Dr. Michel serves as Director and Chief Executive Officer of Volition America (since November 16, 2021), as Chief Executive Officer (since September 15, 2021) and Manager (since September 1, 2021) of Volition Global Services, and as Manager (since August 7, 2019) and President (since May 1, 2021) of Volition Veterinary. In addition, between June 22, 2015 and November 4, 2021, Dr. Michel served and Manager of Belgian Volition, between July 1, 2015 and September 14, 2021 as Chief Executive Officer of Belgian Volition, between January 10, 2020 and October 23, 2020, as a Managing Director of Volition Germany, and between August 14, 2020 and May 1, 2021, as Chief Executive Officer of Volition Veterinary. Dr. Michel also previously served as Belgian Volition’s Chief Operations Officer from July 2014 to June 2018. Dr. Michel has over ten years’ experience in production management. Prior to joining Belgian Volition, from 2010 to 2014 Dr. Michel worked as production director for Bone Therapeutics SA (Euronext Brussels and Paris: BOTHE), a bone cell therapy-based pharmaceutical company, where his responsibilities included establishing two new production plants to commence manufacturing for two phase III clinical trials, developing quality systems for new products in negotiation with the Belgian health authorities, and establishing a product plant for an injectable medical device. From 2007 to 2010, Dr. Michel worked for KitoZyme, a global manufacturer of biopolymers of fungal origin with its core business in weight management, digestive and cardiovascular health. During this period, Dr. Michel established both the production and process development departments and oversaw the commencement of the company’s industrial phase culminating in the roll out of first products. Prior to joining KitoZyme, following the completion of his Ph.D. in 2002, Dr. Michel joined Advanced Array Technologies, or AAT, a University of Namur spin-off company as project manager in proteomics. AAT later became Eppendorf Array Technologies, part of the German Eppendorf biotech company, where Dr. Michel became production manager and was involved in establishing production processes and equipment.

NICHOLAS PLUMMER serves as Group General Counsel. Mr. Plummer is a solicitor qualified in England, with over twenty-five years of legal experience in private practice and in-house roles, primarily in the healthcare sector. He spent nine years working at the UK and international law firm Ashurst as a corporate lawyer, before moving into his first in-house role as General Counsel and Company Secretary of Ark Therapeutics Group PLC, a UK-listed biotech company, from 2004 to 2008. Later roles included eight years (2013 to 2021) at contract drug developer and manufacturer Patheon (subsequently the Pharma Services Group of Thermo Fisher Scientific), where he served as EU Managing Counsel. Mr Plummer joined Volition in November 2021.

DR. MARTIN FAULKES serves as our Executive Chairman of the board of directors. Information regarding Dr. Faulkes is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

GUY INNES serves as a director. Information regarding Mr. Innes is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

DR. ALAN COLMAN serves as a director. Information regarding Dr. Colman is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

DR. PHILLIP BARNES serves as a director. Information regarding Dr. Barnes is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

DR. EDWARD FUTCHER serves as a director. Information regarding Dr. Futcher is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

RICHARD BRUDNICK serves as a director. Information regarding Mr. Brudnick is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement.

KIM NGUYEN serves as a director. Information regarding Ms. Nguyen is provided under the Proposal 1 – Election of Directors section of this Proxy Statement

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE OF THE COMPANY

Our business is managed by the Company’s board of directors. Our board members are informed of our business through discussions with management, materials provided to them, visits to the Company’s offices and facilities, and their participation in meetings of the board of directors.

Corporate Governance Practices and Policies

Our board of directors has been carefully following the corporate governance developments that have been taking place as a result of the adoption of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the rules promulgated thereunder by the SEC, and other corporate governance recommendations. Our board of directors addresses, among other things, the board of directors’ composition, qualifications and responsibilities, director education and stockholder communication with directors.

Director Independence

For purposes of determining director independence, the board of directors reviews a summary of the relationships of each director, including any of his or her family members or related parties, with the Company or management and other facts relevant to the analysis of whether the directors qualify as “independent directors” under the NYSE American Company Guide §803(A)(2). No director qualifies as independent unless the board of directors affirmatively determines that the director does not have a relationship that would interfere with the exercise of his or her independent judgment in carrying out his or her responsibilities as a director. In addition, the NYSE American Company Guide provides a non-exclusive list of persons who may not be considered independent.

The board of directors has affirmatively determined that each of Drs. Colman, Futcher, and Barnes, as well as Messrs. Innes and Brudnick, and Ms. Nguyen, is an independent director under the NYSE American Company Guide. In addition, the members of the Audit Committee are independent directors pursuant to the heightened independence criteria for members of Audit Committees set forth in the applicable SEC rules.

Our independent directors meet as often as is necessary to fulfill their responsibilities but at least annually in executive session without management or non-independent directors in accordance with the requirements of NYSE American Company Guide §802(c).

Term of Office for Directors and Officers

Each director serves until the next annual meeting of stockholders or until such director’s successor is duly elected and qualified, or until his or her earlier death, resignation or removal. Each officer serves for such term as determined by the board of directors.

Family Relationships

None of the executive officers or directors of our Company, or any nominees therefor, are related to each other.

Certain Arrangements and Understandings

There are no arrangements or understandings between any director, executive officer or director nominee and any other person pursuant to which any person was nominated as a director or selected as an executive officer.

Involvement in Certain Legal Proceedings

During the past ten years no director, executive officer or director nominee of VolitionRx has been involved in any legal proceedings required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 401(f) of Regulation S-K. Additionally, no director, executive officer or director nominee of VolitionRx is party to, or has any material interests in, any material legal proceedings that are adverse to the Company or its subsidiaries.

Board and Committee Meetings; Annual Meeting Attendance

During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021: the board of directors held five regularly scheduled meetings and acted by written consent nine times; the Audit Committee held four regularly scheduled meetings and acted by written consent five times; the Compensation Committee held one regularly scheduled meeting and acted by written consent 14 times; and the Nominations and Governance Committee held one regularly scheduled meeting and acted by written consent one time. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, all directors, except for Dr. Butera who served as a director until March 25, 2021, attended, in person or by telephone, all of the meetings of both our board of directors and the committees of our board of directors on which such director served, during their respective periods of service.

The Company does not have a policy with regard to the attendance of the members of the board of directors at annual meetings of stockholders, however, directors are strongly encouraged to attend the annual meetings of stockholders whether in person or by telephone. All directors attended the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, either in person or by telephone.

Committees of the Board of Directors

Our board of directors has established an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee and a Nominations and Governance Committee. The Committees operate pursuant to written charters adopted by the board of directors, copies of which are available on our website at https://ir.volition.com/committee-charters. However, the reference to our website in this Proxy Statement does not constitute incorporation by reference of the information contained on or available through our website, and you should not consider it to be a part of this Proxy Statement. In addition, from time to time, our board of directors may establish special committees when necessary to address specific issues. The composition and functions of each of our Audit, Compensation and Nominations and Governance Committees are described below. Members serve on these committees until their resignation or until otherwise determined by our board of directors.

Audit Committee

Our Audit Committee consists of five members, Mr. Innes (Chair), Drs. Barnes, Colman and Futcher, and Mr. Brudnick, each of whom has been determined to be an independent director under applicable SEC rules and the NYSE American Company Guide. The Audit Committee shall at all times be composed exclusively of directors who are, in the opinion of our board of directors, free from any relationship which would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment as a committee member and who possess an understanding of financial statements and generally accepted accounting principles.

The Audit Committee is responsible for, among other things:

The board of directors has affirmatively determined that Mr. Innes is designated as an “Audit Committee financial expert.”

Compensation Committee

Our Compensation Committee consists of three members, Ms. Nguyen (Chair), Dr. Barnes and Mr. Brudnick, each of whom has been determined to be an independent director under the NYSE American Company Guide.

The Compensation Committee is responsible for, among other things:

In fulfilling its responsibilities, the Compensation Committee has the authority to delegate any or all of its responsibilities to a subcommittee of the Compensation Committee.

Nominations and Governance Committee

Our Nominations and Governance Committee consists of three members, Dr. Futcher (Chair), Ms. Nguyen and Mr. Innes, each of whom has been determined to be an independent director under the NYSE American Company Guide.

The Nominations and Governance Committee is responsible for, among other things:

Nominating Procedures

The Nominations and Governance Committee considers candidates for the board of directors from any reasonable source, including stockholder recommendations. The Committee will not evaluate candidates differently based on who has made the proposal. The Committee has the authority under its charter to hire and pay a fee to consultants or search firms to assist in the process of identifying and evaluating candidates. The Committee utilized a search firm as part of its director search in 2021, for an initial search fee of £10,000 GBP, but no candidates were presented that met the criteria specified by the Committee. The Nominations and Governance Committee, and our board of directors, believe that directors should possess the highest personal and professional ethics, integrity and values, and be committed to representing the long-term interests of the Company’s stockholders. Each director must also be able to dedicate the time and resources sufficient to ensure the diligent performance of his or her duties. Further, our board of directors is intended to encompass a range of talents, experience, skills, backgrounds, and expertise sufficient to provide sound and prudent guidance with respect to the operations and interests of the Company and its stockholders. The Company values diversity and seeks to achieve a diversity of professional experiences, personal backgrounds, and personal characteristics, including race, gender and ethnicity, on our board of directors, but no specific policy regarding board diversity has been adopted.

Stockholders who wish to suggest qualified candidates should write to the Chair of the Nominations and Governance Committee c/o VolitionRx Limited, 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, in accordance with the time periods and information requirements set forth in the Bylaws, specifying the name of the candidates and stating in detail the qualifications of such persons for consideration by the Committee. A written statement from the candidate consenting to be named as a candidate and, if nominated and elected, to serve as a director should accompany any such recommendation. See the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Deadline for Receipt of Stockholder Proposals for the Next Annual Meeting. No director nominations by stockholders have been received as of the filing of this Proxy Statement.

Board Leadership Structure and Role in Risk Oversight

Our board of directors does not have a formal policy regarding the separation of the roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board. Our board of directors believes that it is in the best interests of our organization to make that determination from time to time based on the position and the direction of our organization and the membership of our board of directors.

Dr. Martin Faulkes currently serves as the Executive Chairman of our board of directors. Guy Innes is the lead independent director on our board of directors. As the lead independent director, Mr. Innes regularly consults with the Executive Chairman of our board of directors and management on the key issues concerning the Company. Cameron Reynolds, our Chief Executive Officer and principal executive officer, also serves as a director of the Company. Due to Mr. Reynolds’ executive officer position, he is not an independent director. Our board of directors views this arrangement as providing an efficient connection between our management and board of directors, enabling our board to obtain information pertaining to operational matters expeditiously and enabling our Executive Chairman and our Chief Executive Officer to bring areas of concern before the board in a timely manner.

One of our board of directors’ key functions is informed oversight of our risk management process. Our board of directors does not have a standing risk management committee, but rather administers this oversight function directly through the board as a whole, as well as through various board standing committees that address risks inherent in their respective areas of oversight. In particular, our board of directors is responsible for monitoring and assessing strategic risk exposure, including a determination of the nature and level of risk appropriate for us. Each committee of our board of directors meets in executive session with key management personnel and representatives of outside advisors as necessary to oversee risks associated with their respective principal areas of focus. Our Audit Committee oversees management of financial risks. Our Compensation Committee oversees the management of risks related to our executive compensation plans and arrangements. Our Nominations and Governance Committee manages risks associated with the independence of our board and potential conflicts of interest. Although each committee is responsible for evaluating certain risks and overseeing the management of such risks, the entire board of directors is regularly informed through committee reports about such risks. While our board of directors, through its committees, oversees our risk management, our management team is responsible for day-to-day risk-management processes to ensure that such risks are being adequately managed.

Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, our board of directors has received regular updates from the management team and is involved in ongoing strategy decisions related to the impact of COVID-19 on our employees and our business.

Communications with the Board of Directors

Our board of directors encourages stockholders and other interested parties to send communications to the board of directors or to individual members of the board of directors. Such communications, whether by letter, e-mail or telephone, should be directed to the Executive Chairman of the board of directors who will forward them to the intended recipients. However, unsolicited advertisements or invitations to conferences or promotional material, in the discretion of the Executive Chairman or his designee, may not be forwarded to the directors.

If a stockholder or other interested party wishes to communicate to our board of directors regarding a concern relating to the Company’s financial statements, accounting practices or internal controls, the concern should be submitted in writing to the board of directors in care of the Executive Chairman at the Company’s headquarters. If the concern relates to the Company’s governance practices, business ethics or corporate conduct, the concern likewise should be submitted in writing to the Executive Chairman at the Company’s headquarters address. If the stockholder or other interested party is unsure as to which category his or her concern relates, he or she may communicate it to any one of the directors in care of the Company’s Corporate Secretary.

Stockholders or other interested parties who wish to contact members of our board of directors either individually or as a group may do so by writing to Corporate Secretary c/o VolitionRx Limited, 13215 Bee Cave Parkway, Suite 125, Galleria Oaks B, Austin, Texas 78738, or by telephone at +1 (646) 650-1351, specifying whether the communication is directed to the entire board of directors or to a particular director. Such communications are screened by Company personnel to filter out improper or irrelevant topics, such as solicitations, and to confirm that they relate to matters that are within the scope of responsibilities of the board of directors.

Stockholder Engagement

In the fall of 2021 and early 2022 in response to the unsatisfactory stockholder support we received at prior annual meetings on proposals put forward by management, including the advisory vote on executive compensation (“say on pay”), we undertook an engagement program with our significant stockholders. Discussions in these meetings focused on steps we have taken to evolve our compensation practices, strengthen our internal controls, and our thinking on a range of environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, issues, including board composition considerations. After receiving a poor say on pay vote and low support on the proposals put forward by management, we wanted to ensure we had a clear understanding of what our stockholders expected of us.

In our outreach efforts, we reached out to institutional holders representing approximately 36% of our outstanding shares, as well as certain individual retail stockholders with significant holdings. We held meetings with five institutional stockholders representing approximately 8% of shares outstanding, as well as Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis. We also received written feedback from three institutions representing approximately 0.3% of our outstanding shares. We were unfortunately unable to engage with our largest stockholder due to the passing of its principal in late 2021. At the conclusion of our engagement process, we reached out to representatives of our largest stockholder to provide a summary of the feedback received and actions taken or planned in response thereto.

All the stockholders we engaged with expressed an appreciation for hearing from our leadership. They encouraged us to disclose more information and to continue to engage with stockholders. We found the engagement exercise to be extremely beneficial and we are planning an annual engagement program.

Key feedback from our engagement, and actions that are responsive to that feedback, are summarized below.

Board composition. Most stockholders raised questions regarding board composition, ranging from consideration of demographic diversity to how we are thinking about the skills and expertise needed as our company matures. In March 2021, we added two new independent directors who we believe are critical in helping us as we transition to the commercialization phase. Richard Brudnick brings valuable experience on product commercialization and Kim Nguyen is an experienced human resource expert who has provided excellent advice on best practices. This refreshment also increased the diversity of the board on the basis of both gender and race. When planning further refreshment, we are mindful of the importance of diversity in all forms, including gender and racial diversity, as we consider future board candidates and intend to adopt a Rooney Rule for future board appointments.

Remediation of material weaknesses. Material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting and our ability to continue as a going concern have historically impacted the level of stockholder support received by our directors, particularly the chair of our Audit Committee. As we transition from a research and development stage to commercialization of our products, we are also remedying the material weaknesses previously identified in our filings with the SEC. Towards those efforts, Terig Hughes joined as our Chief Financial Officer in February 2021.

During the year ended December 31, 2021, as disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for such period, our management, with oversight from our Audit Committee, implemented the following remediation steps to help address and mitigate all but one of the underlying deficiencies which gave rise to the previously disclosed material weaknesses and to improve our internal control over financial reporting.

Oversight in Information Technologies

Monitoring of Review Controls with Respect to Accounting for Complex Transactions

Segregation of Duties in Some Areas of Finance

As a result of the above actions, management concluded that the deficiencies related to oversight in information technologies and monitoring of review controls with respect to accounting for complex transactions were remedied and we anticipate the remaining weakness regarding segregation of duties in some areas of finance to be resolved in 2022.

With respect to our ability to continue as a going concern, our ability to do so is dependent upon our successful transition to commercialization as well as continued capital contributions and financing.

Compensation Practices. As we begin to shift towards commercialization, we are adapting our compensation scheme appropriately. Several of our stockholders stated that the lack of performance-based compensation was previously a concern. We provided details on our work and commitment to shift towards performance-based compensation as we commercialize our products and have enhanced disclosure in the Compensation of Named Executive Officers section of this Proxy Statement regarding changes to our compensation structure to introduce short- and long-term incentives tied to corporate goals. Stockholders we spoke with were supportive of our phased approach, while emphasizing that they expected to see more robust use of performance-based incentives as the commercialization strategy matures.

Governance Practices. Based on the lack of stockholder support for some of the 2021 management proposals relating to board classification, special meeting rights and rights relating to director removal, we will not be putting forward these proposals at this Annual Meeting.

Environmental and Social Matters. No investor expressed a concern that ESG practices posed a material risk to the Company. The common perspective shared was that we should disclose what steps, if any, we have taken. Some investors expressed the view that affordability of our product could be a way to use ESG as a differentiator as we mature.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a Code of Ethics that applies to our directors, officers and employees, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer. A copy of our Code of Ethics is available on our Company website at https://ir.volition.com/governance-documents. Amendments to our Code of Ethics that apply to our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer, controller or persons performing similar functions, if any, will be posted on our website at https://ir.volition.com/governance-documents. We will disclose any waivers of provisions of our Code of Ethics that apply to such persons by disclosing such information on a Current Report on Form 8-K.

Employee, Director and Officer Hedging

We have not adopted any practice or policy regarding the ability of our employees (including officers) or directors, or any of their designees, to purchase financial instruments (including prepaid variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars, and exchange funds), or otherwise engage in transactions, that hedge or offset, or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of our equity securities.

Transactions with Related Persons

For disclosures relating to certain transactions with related persons, see the sections entitled Summary Compensation Table, Employment and Consulting Agreements and the Compensation of Directors Table in this Proxy Statement.

On December 16, 2019, we adopted an Enterprise Management Incentive, or EMI, scheme which provided our United Kingdom employees with a more tax-advantageous stock option scheme. The adoption of the EMI scheme required the cancellation or partial cancellation of one or more options issued pursuant to our 2015 Plan to United Kingdom employees, and the concurrent reissuance to those employees of an equivalent number of options under the EMI scheme from the 2015 Plan on the same terms and conditions (other than the exercise price, as noted below) and for the same number of shares of our common stock as were underlying the cancelled portions of the options. The exercise price of the options issued pursuant to the EMI scheme was set to the closing sales price per share quoted on the NYSE American on the date of adoption, or December 16, 2019, unless the closing price was less than the exercise price of the original option, in which case the exercise price of the substitute option was equal to the exercise price of the original option. On September 21, 2021, additional options issued pursuant to the 2015 Plan to United Kingdom employees (including those reissued on December 16, 2019) were cancelled and reissued on the same terms and conditions as the cancelled options (other than the term which was extended by four years to now expire ten years from the original date of grant). Those employees who participated in the EMI scheme option exchange included our Executive Chairman of the board of directors, Dr. Martin Faulkes, and certain of our executive officers, including Dr. Jacob Micallef and Rodney Rootsaert, among others. The cancellation and reissuance of options with respect to directors and named executive officers is reflected elsewhere in this Proxy Statement in the tables entitled Summary Compensation Table, Outstanding Equity Awards Table and Compensation of Directors Table, as applicable.

We provide indemnification to our directors and officers so that they will be free from undue concern about personal liability in connection with their service to the Company. Under our Bylaws and Certificate of Incorporation, we are required to indemnify our directors and officers to the extent permitted by Delaware law. Additionally, as part of the engagement letters and/or Independent Director Agreements with each of our directors and/or executive officers, certain indemnification provisions may require us, among other things, to indemnify our directors and executive officers for expenses, including attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines and settlement amounts incurred by a director or officer in any action or proceeding arising out of his or her service as one of our directors or officers.

Other than the foregoing, we are not aware of any transaction to which we are a party that has occurred during the past two fiscal years, or in any currently proposed transaction, involving our directors, nominees for directors, executive officers, or any person who owned of record or was known to own beneficially more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock, or any associate or affiliate of such persons or companies, where such person or entity has any material interest, direct or indirect, in such transaction and that requires disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

Policy on the Review, Approval or Ratification of Transactions with Related Persons

The Company has not adopted a separate written policy for the approval or ratification of all transactions with related persons that are required to be reported under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K. Rather, pursuant to its charter, and unless otherwise provided by the board of directors, the Audit Committee reviews the material facts of all such transactions and either ratifies, approves or disapproves of the Company’s entry into the transaction.

No director is allowed to participate in the approval of a transaction for which he or she is a related person and directors must provide all material information concerning such transactions to the Audit Committee.

REPORT OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

The Audit Committee of our board of directors is responsible for assisting our board of directors in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities regarding the Company’s financial accounting and reporting process, system of internal control, audit process, and process for monitoring compliance with laws and regulations. The Audit Committee operates pursuant to a written charter, a copy of which is posted on our website at https://ir.volition.com/committee-charters. The Audit Committee met four times and acted by written consent five times during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. All members of the Audit Committee are non-employee directors and satisfy the current NYSE American Company Guide and SEC requirements with respect to independence, financial literacy and experience.

Management of the Company has the primary responsibility for the Company’s consolidated financial statements as well as the Company’s financial reporting process, accounting principles and internal controls. Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC, the independent registered public accounting firm for the Company in 2021, is responsible for performing an audit of the Company’s consolidated financial statements, and expressing an opinion as to the conformity of such financial statements with generally accepted accounting principles.

In this context, the Audit Committee has reviewed and discussed the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company as of and for the year ended December 31, 2021 with the Company’s management and the independent registered public accounting firm. The Audit Committee has discussed with the independent registered public accounting firm the matters required to be discussed by the applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or PCAOB, and the SEC. The Audit Committee has also received the written disclosures and the letter from the independent registered public accounting firm required by applicable requirements of the PCAOB (Rule 3526) regarding the independent accountants’ communications with the Audit Committee concerning independence, and has discussed with the independent registered public accounting firm the accounting firm’s independence.

Based on the foregoing, the Audit Committee has recommended to our board of directors the inclusion of the audited consolidated financial statements in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

Guy Innes, Chair

Dr. Phillip Barnes

Dr. Alan Colman

Dr. Edward Futcher

Richard Brudnick

The foregoing Report of the Audit Committee does not constitute soliciting material and should not be deemed filed or incorporated by reference into any of our other filings under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except to the extent we specifically incorporate this Report by reference therein.

COMPENSATION OF NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Summary Compensation Table

The following table sets forth the principal positions of the named executive officers of the Company and the compensation awarded to, earned by or paid to such persons for all services rendered in all capacities to the Company and its subsidiaries, for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.

Employment and Consulting Agreements

Cameron Reynolds

On March 7, 2017, Mr. Reynolds entered into an Employment Agreement with Volition Diagnostics, or the Reynolds UK Employment Agreement, which took effect on April 1, 2017. Pursuant to the terms of the Reynolds UK Employment Agreement, Mr. Reynolds shall serve as Chief Executive Officer of Volition Diagnostics. Volition Diagnostics will also make available the services of Mr. Reynolds, as Chief Executive Officer, to VolitionRx and its other subsidiaries, pursuant to services agreements entered into by and between Volition Diagnostics and VolitionRx or its subsidiaries. In exchange for his services, Mr. Reynolds received, among other things (i) £25,866 GBP per month from Volition Diagnostics (subject to annual review and adjustment), and (ii) from April 1, 2017, Mr. Reynolds additionally received a payment of £1,293 GBP per month toward the Volition Diagnostics UK Group Personal Pension Plan (as described in detail in the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Long-Term Incentive Plans). Effective December 1, 2020, upon mutual agreement of the parties, the Reynolds UK Employment Agreement was superseded and replaced by a Consulting Services Agreement, or the Reynolds Consulting Agreement, between Singapore Volition and PB Commodities Pte. Ltd, a Singapore corporation, or PB Commodities. Pursuant to the terms of the Reynolds Consulting Agreement, Singapore Volition will make available the services of Mr. Reynolds, as Group Chief Executive Officer, to the Company and its subsidiaries, pursuant to the services agreements entered into by and between Singapore Volition and the Company or its subsidiaries. The term of the Reynolds Consulting Agreement is perpetual until terminated upon six months’ prior notice. The agreement includes a six-month non-compete following termination of the agreement. PB Commodities will receive a monthly fee of $35,650 in exchange for the services provided by Mr. Reynolds, subject to annual review and adjustment. The foregoing description of each of the Reynolds UK Employment Agreement and the Reynolds Consulting Agreement does not purport to summarize all terms and conditions thereof and is qualified in its entirety by reference to Exhibit 10.27 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 10, 2017, and Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on November 21, 2020.

Terig Hughes

On January 27, 2021, Mr. Hughes entered into an Employment Agreement with Singapore Volition, or the Hughes Employment Agreement, which took effect on February 1, 2021. Pursuant to the terms of the Hughes Employment Agreement, Mr. Hughes shall serve as Chief Financial Officer of Singapore Volition. Singapore Volition will also make available the services of Mr. Hughes, as Chief Financial Officer, to VolitionRx and its other subsidiaries, pursuant to services agreements entered into by and between Singapore Volition and VolitionRx or its subsidiaries. The Hughes Employment Agreement continues until terminated by either party providing not less than three months’ notice and provides for a three month non-compete following termination. In exchange for his services, Mr. Hughes shall receive (i) $30,000 SGD per month (subject to annual review and adjustment); (ii) Standard Group Inpatient & Outpatient (General Practitioner and Specialist Practitioners) medical insurance in Singapore at a premium of $1,105 SGD, for the period from February 2, 2021 to December 31, 2021; and (iii) a lump sum severance payment if terminated by Singapore Volition without cause (as per the agreement) equal to the salary that he would have received between the date of termination and the completion of a three-month notice period. The foregoing description of the Hughes Employment Agreement does not purport to summarize all terms and conditions thereof and is qualified in its entirety by reference to Exhibit 10.20 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 22, 2021.

Dr. Jacob Micallef

On March 7, 2017, Dr. Micallef entered into an Employment Agreement with Volition Diagnostics, or the Micallef UK Employment Agreement, which took effect on April 1, 2017. Volition Diagnostics will make available the services of Dr. Micallef, as Chief Scientific Officer, to VolitionRx and its other subsidiaries, pursuant to services agreements entered into by and between Volition Diagnostics and VolitionRx. The Micallef UK Employment Agreement continues until terminated by either party providing not less than three months’ notice and provides for a six month non-compete following termination. In exchange for his services, Dr. Micallef shall receive, among other things (i) £12,669 GBP per month (subject to annual review and adjustment); (ii) from August 1, 2020, Dr. Micallef additionally received a payment of £633 GBP per month toward the Volition Diagnostics UK Group Personal Pension Plan (as described in detail in the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Long-Term Incentive Plans); and (iii) a severance payment if terminated by Volition Diagnostics (except in limited circumstances specified in the Micallef UK Employment Agreement that generally constitute cause, such as a repeated breach of the Agreement) equal to the salary that he would have received between the date of termination and the completion of a three month notice period less income tax and National Insurance contributions, payable in equal monthly installments during such notice period. With respect to any severance payment, Dr. Micallef has an obligation to seek alternative income during the remainder of the notice period and any such income received would offset the severance payment amount. The foregoing description of the Micallef UK Employment Agreement does not purport to summarize all terms and conditions thereof and is qualified in its entirety by reference to Exhibit 10.28 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 10, 2017.

Role of Executive Officers with Compensation Decisions

For executive officers, including our named executive officers other than our Chief Executive Officer, the Compensation Committee considers recommendations of our Chief Executive Officer. The Compensation Committee then takes the recommendations of the Chief Executive Officer and makes a determination on the amount of any cash or equity incentive awards payable to the other executive officers. The other executive officers and other senior management personnel also are generally not present at meetings of the Compensation Committee and do not participate in its discussions regarding executive compensation decisions.

While our Chief Executive Officer discusses his compensation recommendations with the Compensation Committee for other executive officers, he does not participate in any Compensation Committee deliberation or determination with respect to his own compensation. The determination of the amount of compensation paid to the Chief Executive Officer is made by the Compensation Committee and subject to the terms of his employment agreement.

With respect to compensation of non-employee directors, the Compensation Committee considers the recommendations of our Chief Executive Officer and makes a determination on the amount of compensation, including equity awards, to such directors subject to the terms of their independent director agreements.

Compensation Consultant

No compensation consultant was used or hired during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

Outstanding Equity Awards Tables

The following table summarizes the outstanding restricted stock unit awards for our named executive officers as of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

The following table summarizes the outstanding stock option awards for our named executive officers as of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

Long-Term Incentive Plans

Since July 1, 2021, we have offered to our eligible U.S.-based salaried employees, including our U.S.-based named executive officers, a customary, tax-qualified defined contribution retirement (401(k)) plan. For 2021, we provided a company match on employee contributions of 100% on the first 3% of an employee’s pay, which we believe to be in line with prevailing practices for major U.S. corporations.

Volition Diagnostics operates a Group Personal Pension Plan, or the Pension Plan, and makes defined monthly contributions into a separate fund on behalf of its eligible United Kingdom employees, as required by the Pensions Act 2008 (UK). Certain of the Company’s executive officers who are based in the United Kingdom are eligible to participate in the Pension Plan. Volition Diagnostics contributes five percent of the gross salary paid to those of its eligible employees to the Pension Plan. Those eligible employees are also required to contribute to the Pension Plan. All risks associated with this type of plan are assumed by the employees. The Pension Plan was effective commencing April 6, 2017.

Other than the foregoing, there are no arrangements or plans in which VolitionRx or its direct or indirect subsidiaries provides pension, retirement or similar benefits for directors or executive officers.

Severance and Change of Control Benefits

In the event of a termination of employment under certain circumstances, the named executive officers are entitled to severance payments as detailed in the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Employment and Consulting Agreements.

Additionally, under certain circumstances involving a change in control, merger, sale of all or substantially all of our assets or other similar corporate transaction, where the successor or acquiring corporation (if any) refuses to assume, convert, replace or substitute awards, then the vesting of unvested awards will accelerate pursuant to the terms of the 2015 Plan.

PROPOSAL 1 — ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Our board of directors currently consists of eight annually elected directors. Acting upon the recommendation of our Nominations and Governance Committee, the full board of directors nominated the persons set forth in the table below for election to our board of directors at the Annual Meeting. Each elected director will hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders, and until such director’s successor is duly elected and qualified, or until his or her earlier death, resignation or removal.

Each of the nominees has consented to serve if elected. However, in the event that any nominee is unable or declines to serve as a director (which is not anticipated), the proxy holders will vote for such substitute nominee as recommended by the board of directors. See the Compensation of Directors Table below for information relating to compensatory agreements for the director nominees.

Except as disclosed in the notes to the Compensation of Directors Table, there are no arrangements or understandings between any director and any other person pursuant to which any director was nominated as a director.

Proxies

Proxies received in response to this solicitation will be voted “FOR” the election of each of the director nominees named below unless otherwise specified in the proxy.

Vote Required

Directors are elected by the vote of a plurality of shares of common stock represented at the Annual Meeting, meaning the nominees receiving the highest number of votes will be elected to the board of directors.

Board of Directors’ Recommendation

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS THAT YOU VOTE “FOR” THE ELECTION OF EACH OF THE DIRECTOR NOMINEES SET FORTH BELOW.

Director Nominees

Set forth below is information as to each nominee for director (ages are as of the Record Date).

The business experience of each person listed above and his or her qualification to serve as a director is as follows:

CAMERON REYNOLDS serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer and as a director. Prior to completion of the transactions under the Share Exchange Agreement, he was Chief Executive Officer of Singapore Volition, a position he held from August 5, 2010 to June 1, 2018, and a Director of Singapore Volition between August 5, 2010 and September 1, 2021. He is also a Manager of Belgian Volition since October 27, 2010, serving as Managing Director from January 18, 2012 to July 24, 2015, a Director and Chief Executive Officer of Volition Diagnostics since November 13, 2015, a Director of Volition America since February 3, 2017 and was appointed a Manager of Volition Vet on August 7, 2019. Since February 2017, Mr. Reynolds has also served as a non-executive director of Pathify Holdings, Inc. (formerly Ucroo Incorporated), a SaaS EdTech company. Further, between July 2018 and December 2021, he served as a non-executive director of Wellfully Limited (ASX: WFL) (formerly OBJ Limited), a developer of magnetic, micro-array drug and ingredient delivery technologies for use in pharmaceutical, cosmetic and skincare, and consumer healthcare industries. From 2004 until 2011, Mr. Reynolds founded and served as Managing Director and Director of Mining House Ltd., where he was responsible for identifying potential mining projects, coordinating the preliminary evaluations and securing the financing with a view to listing the companies on the AIM, the TSX and the U.S. OTC. Mr. Reynolds furthered his education between 2002 and 2003 as he undertook an MBA. From 1998 until 2001, Mr. Reynolds served as the commercialization director for Probio, Inc., a company that commercialized intellectual property in the animal biotechnology fields including transgenesis and cloning research from the University of Hawaii, where his duties and responsibilities included managing legal and contract issues with the University of Hawaii; implementing patenting strategy; managing stockholder issues including a merger and its legal and contractual documentation; overseeing office management; monitoring budgetary concerns; team building and recruitment. Furthermore, Mr. Reynolds held a junior management position in 1996 at Integrated Coffee Technologies, a genetically modified coffee company where he was responsible for business plan creation, office management, recruitment, and business development. Beginning in 1994, Mr. Reynolds worked for Southern China Group where, as regional manager, he set up operations in Hong Kong and Yunnan. Between 2005 and 2011, Mr. Reynolds held a number of board directorships including Atlantic Mining PLC, Carbon Mining PLC, Magellan Copper and Gold PLC (Carbon Mining and MCG both became part of Solfotara Mining and Copper Development Corp.), KAL Energy Inc. (OTC: KALG), Iofina Natural Gas PLC (AIM: IOF), Canyon Copper Corp. (TSX-V: CNC, OTCBB: CNYC), and Hunter Bay Resources (TSX-V: HBY). Our board of directors believes Mr. Reynolds brings to the Company strong experience in management, structuring and strategic planning of start-up companies based on his over 25 years of entrepreneurial executive experience in the mining and biotechnology sectors.

DR. MARTIN FAULKES serves as Executive Chairman of our board of directors. Prior to completion of the transactions under the Share Exchange Agreement, Dr. Faulkes served as a Director of Singapore Volition from August 18, 2010 to December 15, 2015 and as Executive Chairman of the board of directors of Singapore Volition from March 22, 2011 to December 15, 2015. Dr. Faulkes also served as a Director of Belgian Volition, a position he held from August 10, 2011 to March 31, 2016. On August 7, 2019, Dr. Faulkes was appointed as a Manager and President of Volition Vet, and served as President until May 1, 2021. Since 1998, Dr. Faulkes has focused on charitable activities as the founder and sole benefactor of The Dill Faulkes Educational Trust, a U.K.-registered charity, or DFET, where he serves as the Chairman. Prior to founding DFET, Dr. Faulkes founded Triad Plc., a computer software development company that provides systems and consultants to the business community, where he was a Director from 1987 to 1998, and responsible for controlling the company financially. From 1985 to 1987, he became Managing Director of System Programming Ltd., a company that provides computer programming for systems in businesses such as airlines, utility companies, banks, and insurance companies, where he was responsible for all aspects of the business. Prior to working for System Programming Ltd., Dr. Faulkes served from 1979 to 1984 as founder, President and Chief Executive Officer for Logica Inc., a company providing bespoke software to all industries but mainly banks and communications companies. Dr. Faulkes was responsible for all aspects of the business, including sales, finance, recruitment, staff management and project control. Dr. Faulkes has over 40 years of entrepreneurial and managerial experience as the founder and Chief Executive Officer of several software companies within the United Kingdom and the United States. Our board of directors believes that Dr. Faulkes is qualified to serve as a director of the Company based on his extensive experience in business development and management.

GUY INNES serves as a director. Prior to completion of the transactions under the Share Exchange Agreement, Mr. Innes served as a Director of Singapore Volition, a position he held from August 18, 2010 to December 15, 2015. Mr. Innes has served as a non-executive Director on the board of companies such as Carbon Mining PLC from 2007 to 2010, Magellan Copper & Gold PLC from 2007 to 2010, and ProBio Inc. from 2000 to 2006. As a non-executive Director, Mr. Innes was responsible for the development of corporate strategy and the implementation of financial controls and risk management systems. Mr. Innes had a long career in banking and private equity, including advisory roles with Quartz Capital Partners Limited, or Quartz, from 1997 to 2000, where Mr. Innes served as Head of Corporate Finance and was responsible for managing the corporate finance department and leading the transactions undertaken by Quartz including IPOs, private placements and mergers and acquisitions; Baring Private Equity Partners Limited in London and Singapore from 1995 to 1997, where he was involved in the setting up, recruiting of managers and capital raising for an Asian media and communications private equity fund; and Baring Brothers & Co. Limited in London and Paris from 1984 to 1995, where he was involved in executing and advising on national and international mergers and acquisitions, as well as IPOs and capital raising. Mr. Innes is a Chartered Accountant and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Mr. Innes has extensive experience in financing and managing technology companies. Our board of directors believes Mr. Innes’ technical, financial and managerial background would be beneficial to our growth.

DR. ALAN COLMAN serves as a director. Prior to completion of the transactions under the Share Exchange Agreement, Dr. Colman served as a Director of Singapore Volition from April 1, 2011 to December 15, 2015. Dr. Colman currently serves as Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of Belgian Volition, a position he has held since April 5, 2011. Dr. Colman received a B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. from Oxford University. Dr. Colman is currently an Associate at the Harvard University Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, and is also a director of Gaibian Associates Pte. Ltd., a consultancy company, in Singapore. Until its acquisition by Vertex Pharmaceuticals in October 2019, he served on the Scientific Advisory Board of Semma Therapeutics, Inc., a stem cell therapy company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a position he held since December 2014. From 2007 to 2013, Dr. Colman served as the Executive Director of the Singapore Stem Cell Consortium. Concurrently, Dr. Colman was Professor of Regenerative Medicine at King’s College, London, U.K., from 2008 to 2009. Prior to joining the A*STAR Singapore Stem Cell Consortium, Dr. Colman was Chief Scientific Officer and then Chief Executive Officer for the Singaporean human embryonic stem cell company, ES Cell International from 2002 to 2007. Dr. Colman was the research director at PPL Therapeutics in Edinburgh, U.K., from the late 1980s until 2002, where he was responsible for leading PPL’s research program strategy, also playing a role in PPL’s financing rounds, culminating in its listing on the London Stock Exchange in 1996. PPL attracted considerable media attention because of its participation in the technique of somatic nuclear transfer that led to the world’s first sheep cloned from an adult cell, Dolly, in 1996. Dr. Colman had a successful university career in the Universities of Oxford, Warwick, Birmingham, where he was Professor of Biochemistry, and London, as described above. Dr. Colman’s main current interest is the development of human disease models using induced pluripotent stem cells. Dr. Colman has extensive experience in the molecular biology field where he has worked in the production of transgenic livestock, somatic nuclear transfer, and human disease models. Our board of directors believes that Dr. Colman is qualified to serve as a director of the Company and a member of the Scientific Advisory Board based on his extensive experience in biochemistry, stem cell research and pathology.

DR. PHILLIP BARNES serves as a director. Dr. Barnes holds a B.S. in Basic Medical Sciences with Anatomy, and Ph.D. in Anatomy and Neuroendocrinology from the University of London and a clinical medical degree (B.M. B.Ch.) from the University of Oxford. Dr. Barnes is currently retired. Between 2009 and his retirement in 2016, Dr. Barnes served as Executive Medical Director on a number of United Kingdom Department of Health, National Health Service, or NHS, hospital and Foundation Trust Boards. Between 2000 and 2009, Dr. Barnes was also involved in a number of national and regional advisory groups for the NHS and pharmaceutical industry. Dr. Barnes was Consultant Neurologist at King’s College Hospital, London, from 1995 to 2009 and Hon. Senior Lecturer in Neurology at King’s College London from 1999 to 2009. From 1995 to 1998, Dr. Barnes served as Clinical Director for Neurology and from 1998 until 2008 as Director of the King’s Neurosciences Centre, the United Kingdom’s largest Regional Neuroscience Centre. Our board of directors believes that Dr. Barnes is qualified to serve as a director of the Company based on his extensive experience both as a clinician and clinical manager within the United Kingdom’s NHS and related academic institutions.

DR. EDWARD FUTCHER serves as a director. Dr. Futcher holds a B.S. and Ph.D. in Physics from the University of London, as well as a post-graduate certificate in international securities, investment and banking from the ICMA Centre, University of Reading, and has extensive experience in engineering and management in high technology companies. Since 1997, Dr. Futcher has held non-executive directorships with a variety of private companies. He co-founded Azima, Inc. in 2003, a company that provides advanced machine diagnosis to large industrial facilities and, from 2003 to 2008, served as its Vice President of Engineering with responsibility for the engineering, information technology and customer support groups. Prior to that, from 1997 to 2003, Dr. Futcher served as Vice President of Technology of interWAVE Communications International, Ltd., a company providing GSM and CDMA cellular infrastructure equipment, where he was responsible for operational management of acquisitions and interim management of the worldwide research and development organization. From 1997 to 1999, Dr. Futcher also served as Vice President of Engineering of interWAVE Communications. From 1994 to 1997, Dr. Futcher was Director of Engineering at Tellabs, Inc., a telecommunications equipment supplier. Our board of directors believes that Dr. Futcher is qualified to serve as a director of the Company based on his extensive commercial and management experience in dynamic and fast growing companies, and his ability to provide strategic counsel in connection with the commercialization of the Nu.Q blood-based diagnostic platform.

RICHARD BRUDNICK serves as a director. Mr. Brudnick holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management. Since June 2018, Mr. Brudnick has served as Chief Business Officer and Head of Corporate Strategy of Codiak BioSciences, Inc. (NASDAQ GS: CDAK), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on pioneering the development of exosome-based therapeutics. Prior to that, Mr. Brudnick served as the Executive Vice President, Business Development at Bioverativ, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIVV), a biopharmaceutical company focused on therapies for hemophilia and other rare blood disorders and a spin-off from Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ GS: BIIB), commencing in June 2016 until Bioverativ was acquired by Sanofi in 2018. From 2014 to June 2016, Mr. Brudnick served as Biogen’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Development. Mr. Brudnick also served in senior positions in the areas of Portfolio Strategy & Business Development and Corporate Development at Biogen commencing in 2001. Before joining Biogen, Mr. Brudnick was the Chief Executive Officer of a regional pharmaceutical distribution business, a co-founder of two companies and a strategy consultant at Bain & Company. Mr. Brudnick currently serves as a director of InflaRx N.V. (NASDAQ GS: IFRX), a clinical stage publicly traded biopharmaceutical company developing anti-inflammatory therapeutics by targeting the complement system, a position he has held since May 2019, and since October 2021, as a director of Tamarix Pharma Ltd, a private, venture backed pre-clinical pharmaceutical company developing therapies for apoptosis driven diseases. Our board of directors believes that Mr. Brudnick is qualified to serve as a director of the Company based on his experience conceiving, leading, negotiating and executing numerous licensing, partnership, joint venture, acquisition, sale and divestiture transactions with biopharmaceutical businesses and his experience as an executive officer of two public companies.

KIM NGUYEN serves as a director. Ms. Nguyen holds a B.S. in Psychology (Hons) from the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia and has extensive experience as an international human resources, or HR, professional with over 20 years’ experience working with multinational technology companies. Ms. Nguyen currently serves as VP of International HR of Binance, a blockchain company, a position she has held since January 2022. Between September 2017 and January 2022, Ms. Nguyen served as Head of HR for Google Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., where she led a 25-person team supporting over 15,000 employees across the APAC region. Ms. Nguyen oversaw employee engagement and retention, COVID-19 crisis management, new market expansion strategy, M&A, business growth and reorganization, employment legal and regulatory risk management, and drove HR change and transformation for a business that is still rapidly growing in the region. Prior to her APAC position, from July 2011 to August 2017, Ms. Nguyen led HR for Google’s Datacentre business in Europe and Latin America, and was responsible for the business’ growth strategy, as the business aggressively grew in these regions. Our board of directors believes that Ms. Nguyen is qualified to serve as a director of the Company based on her extensive experience within international labor law and practice, leadership and talent management development, organizational design and HR analytics.

Compensation of Directors Table

The following table sets forth the compensation paid to the directors of VolitionRx for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 other than directors who also served as named executive officers. No executive officer is paid compensation for his role as a director. There are no employment agreements by and between the Company and the non-employee directors. See the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Compensation of Named Executive Officers - Summary Compensation Table for information on the compensation paid to named executive officers who were also directors.

PROPOSAL 2 — RATIFICATION OF SELECTION OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

The Audit Committee of our board of directors is responsible for the appointment, compensation, retention and oversight of the work of our independent registered public accounting firm. The Audit Committee has selected Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC, or Sadler Gibb, as our independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2022 and has further directed that management submit the selection of the independent registered public accounting firm for ratification by our stockholders at the Annual Meeting.

Although ratification by our stockholders is not a prerequisite to the Audit Committee’s ability to select our independent registered public accounting firm, the Audit Committee believes such ratification is advisable and in the best interests of our stockholders. Accordingly, stockholders are being requested to ratify, confirm and approve the selection of Sadler Gibb as our independent registered public accounting firm to conduct the annual audit of our consolidated financial statements for fiscal year 2022. If the stockholders do not ratify the selection of Sadler Gibb, the selection of our independent registered public accounting firm will be reconsidered by the Audit Committee; provided, however, the Audit Committee may select Sadler Gibb notwithstanding the failure of our stockholders to ratify its selection. If the appointment of Sadler Gibb is ratified, the Audit Committee will continue to conduct an ongoing review of Sadler Gibb’s scope of engagement, pricing and work quality, among other factors, and will retain the right to replace Sadler Gibb at any time.

Sadler Gibb has served as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm since November 29, 2011. Representatives from Sadler Gibb are not expected to be present at the Annual Meeting to be held on June 13, 2022.

Proxies

Proxies received in response to this solicitation will be voted “FOR” the approval of Sadler Gibb unless otherwise specified in the proxy.

Vote Required

The ratification of Sadler Gibb as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2022 requires the approval of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the matter at the Annual Meeting.

Board of Directors’ Recommendation

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS THAT YOU VOTE “FOR” THE RATIFICATION OF SADLER, GIBB & ASSOCIATES, LLC AS THE COMPANY’S INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR THE YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2022.

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm Fees

Sadler Gibb provides services to the Company including examination of the Company’s annual and quarterly financial statements. The following summarizes aggregate fees billed to us by our independent registered public accounting firm, Sadler Gibb, for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:

Audit Fees

Represents the aggregate fees billed to us for each of the last two fiscal years for professional services rendered by the principal accountants for the audit of our annual financial statements and review of financial statements included in our Form 10-Q filings or services that are normally provided by the accountants in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagement for those fiscal years.

Audit-Related Fees

Represents the aggregate fees billed to us in each of the last two fiscal years for assurance and related services by the principal accountants that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of our financial statements that are not already reported in Audit Fees. These services include accounting consultations and attestation services that are not required by statute.

Tax Fees

Represents the aggregate fees billed to us in each of the last two fiscal years for professional services rendered by the principal accountants for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning.

All Other Fees

Represents the aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for products and services provided by the principal accountants to us, excluding those enumerated above.

Policy on Audit Committee Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services of Independent Auditor

All audit and non-audit services by our independent registered public accounting firm are pre-approved by our Audit Committee. For audit services, the independent registered public accounting firm provides the Audit Committee with an audit plan, including proposed fees in advance of the annual audit. The Audit Committee approves the plan and fees for the audit.

Pursuant to its charter, the Audit Committee may establish pre-approval policies and procedures, subject to SEC and NYSE American rules and regulations, to approve audit and non-audit services; however, it has not yet done so.

PROPOSAL 3 — NON-BINDING ADVISORY VOTE TO APPROVE NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICER COMPENSATION

We are asking our stockholders to approve, by a non-binding advisory vote, the compensation paid to our executive officers who are named in the Summary Compensation Table in this Proxy Statement, which we refer to as our named executive officers. We have disclosed the compensation of our named executive officers pursuant to rules adopted by the SEC.

The Compensation Committee has structured our executive compensation program to:

We believe that our executive compensation practices have fostered our success by:

We urge stockholders to carefully read the section of this Proxy Statement entitled Compensation of Named Executive Officers, which provides the Summary Compensation Table and related compensation disclosures that follow it. Our board of directors and the Compensation Committee believe that the compensation policies and procedures described in this Proxy Statement are effective in achieving our compensation objectives.

Therefore, in accordance with Section 14A of the Exchange Act, and as a matter of good corporate governance, we ask our stockholders to approve the following advisory resolution at the Annual Meeting:

This vote is not intended to address any specific item of compensation, but rather the overall compensation of our named executive officers and the philosophy, policies and practices described in this Proxy Statement. Because your vote is advisory, it will not be binding on the board of directors, the Compensation Committee or the Company. However, our board of directors and Compensation Committee value the opinions of our stockholders and will take into account the outcome of the stockholder vote on this Proposal at the Annual Meeting when considering future executive compensation arrangements. Unless the board of directors modifies its policy on the frequency of future advisory votes regarding the compensation of our named executive officers, the next advisory vote on such matter will be held at the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders.

Proxies

Proxies received in response to this solicitation will be voted “FOR” the approval, on a non-binding advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers disclosed in this Proxy Statement unless otherwise specified in the proxy.

Vote Required

The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting will be required to approve, on a non-binding advisory basis, the compensation of our named executive officers as described herein.

Board of Directors’ Recommendation

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS THAT YOU VOTE “FOR” THE APPROVAL, ON A NON-BINDING ADVISORY BASIS, OF THE COMPENSATION OF OUR NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS. 

PROPOSAL 4 — APPROVAL OF AMENDMENT TO 2015 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN

In August 2015, the board of directors adopted, and our stockholders subsequently approved, the 2015 Stock Incentive Plan, which Plan was later amended in August 2016, June 2017, June 2018, March 2019 and March 2021 respectively, and is collectively referred to as the 2015 Plan. As of April 18, 2022, there were 5,027,518 shares of common stock subject to outstanding options, 969,750 shares subject to outstanding restricted stock unit awards and 200,352 shares still available for grant under the 2015 Plan.

In an effort to preserve cash and to attract, retain and motivate persons who make important contributions to our business, we would like to have the flexibility to issue securities to our employees, directors, consultants, independent contractors and advisors whose present and potential contributions are important to our success, by offering them an opportunity to participate in our future performance. Management believes that the number of shares of common stock currently available for issuance under the 2015 Plan is insufficient to meet its needs to provide for awards to the 2015 Plan participants for the next 12 months and inadequate to allow us the ability to compete successfully for talented employees and consultants.

Consequently, the board of directors has approved, subject to stockholder approval, the amendment to the 2015 Plan to increase by 1,750,000 the number of shares that may be granted under the 2015 Plan. The amendment to our 2015 Plan will increase the number of shares of common stock with respect to which awards may be granted under the 2015 Plan from 6,000,000 to 7,750,000. We are requesting stockholder approval of the proposed increase in the authorized number of shares of common stock under the 2015 Plan.

The board of directors believes that the amendment to the 2015 Plan is necessary and in the best interests of our Company because of the continuing need to provide equity-based incentives to attract and retain qualified personnel and to respond to relevant market changes in equity compensation practices. The use of equity compensation has historically been a significant part of our overall compensation philosophy and is a practice that we plan to continue. The 2015 Plan serves as an important part of this practice and is a critical component of the overall compensation package that we offer to retain and motivate our service providers. In addition, awards under the 2015 Plan provide our service providers an opportunity to acquire or increase their ownership stake in us, and we believe this aligns their interests with those of our stockholders, creating strong incentives for our employees, directors, consultants, independent contractors and advisors to work hard for our future growth and success. If Proposal 4 is not approved by our stockholders, we believe our ability to attract and retain the talent we need to compete in our industry would be seriously and negatively impacted, and this could affect our long-term success.

A broad-based stock incentive plan focuses our employees who receive grants on achieving strong corporate performance, and we have embedded in our culture the necessity for employees to think and act as stockholders. This is an important component of our long-term employee incentive and retention plan and has been very effective in enabling us to attract and retain the talent critical for an innovative and growth-focused company. We also have granted, and in the future may grant, awards to certain employees on a targeted basis to incentivize retention and performance objectives.

In setting and recommending to our stockholders the aggregate number of shares to authorize under the 2015 Plan, our board of directors and Compensation Committee considered the historical number of equity awards granted under the 2011 Plan, as well as our three-year average burn rate for the preceding three fiscal years as follows:

Burn Rate Table