Liestal, Switzerland, January 31, 2017 - Santhera Pharmaceuticals (SIX: SANN) announces that its Board of Directors is nominating Elmar Schnee, Philipp Gutzwiller, Patrick Vink, MD, and Thomas Meier, PhD and CEO of Santhera, for election to the Board of Directors at the Annual Shareholders' Meeting to be held on April 4, 2017. Thomas Meier will also be proposed as Delegate of the Board.
Santhera plans to extend its Board of Directors and nominates Elmar Schnee, Philipp Gutzwiller, Patrick Vink, MD (as previously announced) and Thomas Meier, PhD, CEO of Santhera, for election as new members of the Board of Directors at the Company's forthcoming Annual Shareholders' Meeting on April 4, 2017. Subject to his election to the Board of Directors, the Company's CEO Thomas Meier will be appointed Delegate of the Board.
On the extension of the Board Martin Gertsch, Chairman of Santhera, commented: "Over the last couple of years, Santhera has progressed to a new, exciting stage and is preparing for strong growth of its international business. With these nominees, the Board will gain additional experienced senior executives to strengthen the strategic expertise in growing global pharmaceutical businesses. This will be instrumental for the future development of Santhera and I look very much forward to their support and contribution."
Profiles of the Board nominees for election at the Annual Shareholders Meeting of April 4, 2017:
Elmar Schnee is an experienced executive with a proven track record of managing global pharmaceutical companies. His broad expertise spans senior leadership responsibilities across a variety of functions and geographies in the pharmaceutical industry. At present, Elmar Schnee is Chief Operating Officer of MindMaze, a neuro-technology company spun off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL). Prior to his current responsibility, he was Chairman, CEO and board member of Cardiorentis in Zug, Switzerland. Previously, he was a General Partner and member of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, responsible for its worldwide pharmaceutical business. He also led the major restructuring of the business including the acquisition and integration of Serono. Prior to Merck, Elmar Schnee held senior roles as managing director and in marketing, licensing, strategy and business development with UCB Pharma, Sanofi-Synthelabo, Migliara Kaplan and Fisons. He currently serves on the board of directors of listed Jazz Pharmaceuticals and Stallergenes Greer as well as several other privately held life science companies.
Philipp Gutzwiller is a senior corporate finance professional with a focus on the life sciences industry. He is highly experienced in delivering finance solutions to pharmaceutical companies and can count on a strong network within the finance and healthcare industry in the US, Europe and Japan. Currently, he is Global Head Healthcare at Lloyds Banking Group plc in London. He has accumulated over 15 years' experience as a banker to the broader healthcare industry, advising corporate and private equity clients on the assessment, financing and execution of acquisitions and capital market transactions. He started his career at Roche as a financial controller and later worked as an executive in the firm's corporate mergers and acquisitions team.
Patrick Vink, MD, is currently already an advisor to Santhera's Board. He also advises the life sciences industry and has over 25 years of global industry experience. As a former member of company executive teams, he adds extensive experience in interacting with key stakeholders like investors, the financial community and government officials both from European and US perspectives. In his latest assignment, Patrick Vink was employed as Chief Operating Officer at Cubist Pharmaceuticals, overseeing all worldwide commercial and technical operations as well as global alliance management and managing the company's P&L. Previously, Patrick Vink held several senior management positions with Mylan Inc., Novartis Generics / Sandoz, Biogen and Sanofi-Synthelabo. He currently is chairman of privately-held NMD Pharma and Acacia Pharma and a member of the board of listed Concordia International Corp. and several privately held life science companies.
Thomas Meier, PhD, is Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Santhera and the Company's Chief Executive Officer since 2011. He and his team have been driving the strong progress Santhera made over the past few years, establishing the Company as a leader in mitochondrial medicine and a successful specialty pharmaceutical company. As a neuroscientist by training he adds scientific and business experience in the field of mitochondrial and neuromuscular diseases to the Board and is foreseen to serve as the Delegate of the Board.
About Santhera
Santhera Pharmaceuticals (SIX: SANN) is a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative pharmaceutical products for the treatment of orphan mitochondrial and neuromuscular diseases. Santhera's lead product Raxone is authorized in the European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein for the treatment of Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON). For Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), the second indication for Raxone, Santhera has filed a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) in the European Union and Switzerland. In collaboration with the US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Santhera is developing Raxone in a third indication, primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), and omigapil for congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD), all areas of high unmet medical need. For further information, please visit the Company's website www.santhera.com.
Raxone® is a trademark of Santhera Pharmaceuticals.
| For further information, contact: Thomas Meier, PhD, Chief Executive Officer Phone +41 61 906 89 64 thomas.meier@santhera.com | Christoph Rentsch, Chief Financial Officer Phone +41 61 906 89 65 christoph.rentsch@santhera.com |
| US investor contact: Hans Vitzthum, LifeSci Advisors, LLC Phone +1 212 915 2568 hans@lifesciadvisors.com | US Public Relations contact: Deanne Eagle, Planet Communications Phone +1 917 837 5866 deanne@planetcommunications.nyc |
Disclaimer / Forward-looking statements
This communication does not constitute an offer or invitation to subscribe for or purchase any securities of Santhera Pharmaceuticals Holding AG. This publication may contain certain forward-looking statements concerning the Company and its business. Such statements involve certain risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such statements. Readers should therefore not place undue reliance on these statements, particularly not in connection with any contract or investment decision. The Company disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
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