Form 8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

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FORM 8-K

_________________

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): April 25, 2023

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Arbutus Biopharma Corporation

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

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British Columbia, Canada	001-34949	98-0597776
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

701 Veterans Circle

Warminster, Pennsylvania 18974

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

(267) 469-0914

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

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Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

☐	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
☐	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Shares, without par value	ABUS	The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 8.01. Other Events.

On April 25, 2023, Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (“Arbutus” or the “Company”) issued a press release announcing that the Company was notified via verbal communication from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the AB-101 Investigational New Drug (IND) application has been placed on clinical hold. AB-101 is a novel, oral PD-L1 inhibitor designed to reawaken and boost the immune system of patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (cHBV). The FDA indicated they will provide an official Clinical Hold letter to Arbutus within 30 days. Based on this communication, the Company no longer intends to report initial data from the single-ascending dose portion of the Phase 1 clinical trial in the second half of 2023. A copy of the press release is filed herewith as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated by reference herein.

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

Exhibit Number		Description

99.1		Press Release dated April 25, 2023
104		Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

	Arbutus Biopharma Corporation


Date: April 25, 2023	By:	/s/ David C. Hastings
		David C. Hastings
		Chief Financial Officer

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation filed SEC Form 8-K: Other Events, Financial Statements and Exhibits