News - Appointments

Matthew Durdy, a former investment banker and biotech executive, has been promoted to the position of chief executive of the UK Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, effective April, to succeed Keith Thompson who is retiring.

John Montana, an experienced drug developer, has joined Forbion Capital Partners as an operating partner to help the Netherlands-based venture capital firm manage new investment opportunities.

Bavarian Nordic A/S has appointed Laurence De Moerlooze as chief medical officer, effective April, to help the company advance a portfolio led by vaccines against smallpox and  commercial vaccines against rabies and tick-borne encephali

David Moller, an experienced drug developer, has joined Poxel SA as chief scientific officer to support the advancement of its programmes in Type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. He will be based in Boston, US.

Andrew Smith, a chartered accountant, has been appointed chief financial officer, effective 1 April, at Santhera Pharmaceuticals Holding AG, a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company.

Michele Manto has been promoted to the role of chief commercial officer at Galapagos NV as the company prepares for a regulatory decision and the expected launch of its lead product for rheumatoid arthritis filgotinib.

David Hallett, an experienced biotech executive, has joined Exscientia Ltd as chief operating officer and head of drug discovery. He will be responsible for the company’s work in drug discovery using artificial intelligence technology.

Paul Fry, a former GlaxoSmithKline Plc executive, has been appointed a non-executive director of Avacta Group Plc, effective 3 February. He is currently chief financial officer of Vectura Group Plc, a drug delivery specialist.

Adaptimmune Therapeutics Plc has appointed Elliot Norry as chief medical officer, a job that he has been doing on an interim basis since August 2019. He will lead development of the company’s immunotherapy treatments for cancer.

BioNTech SE has promoted Ryan Richardson to the role of chief strategy officer to help implement the company’s long-term growth strategy. Mr Richardson joined the company in 2018 and previously worked on corporate development.