Opthea (ASX:OPT) has announced that CEO Dr Megan Baldwin will transition to founder and chief innovation officer, appointing US -based executives Dr Frederic Guerard as CEO and Peter Lang as chief financial officer.
“On behalf of the Board, I am pleased to welcome Fred Guerard and Peter Lang to Opthea’s leadership team,” said Opthea chair Dr Jeremy Levin.
“Both come to Opthea with impressive credentials to position Opthea for future growth and success.
“We are also excited to create a new and essential role for Megan to continue to enhance the opportunity for sozinibercept and Opthea’s pipeline of next generation therapeutics for retinal diseases. Megan has dedicated much of her career to making Opthea what it is today and continues to be a critical member of the leadership team and Board of Directors.”
Dr Baldwin said, “Recognising that Opthea is entering a critical stage of its corporate growth trajectory, with an expanded team in the U.S. and increased focus on advancing the commercialization strategy for sozinibercept, I am pleased to welcome both Frederic and Peter to their new roles and working with them to lead Opthea’s transition to its next phase of growth.”
Dr Guerard said, “I’m excited to join Opthea at such an important time for the Company. I believe it’s now well-positioned to disrupt the eye disease treatment landscape highlighted by sozinibercept’s potential to become the first drug, when used in combination, to deliver superior visual gains compared to standard of care in wet AMD. I wish to extend my gratitude to the Board for this opportunity and look forward to working with Megan, Peter and the entire team as we work to advance Opthea to ultimately become a premier ophthalmology company.”
Mr Lang added, “I am honoured to have this opportunity to work with Fred, Megan, the management team, and Board to efficiently grow the business and bring significant value to patients, clinicians, and investors. The Opthea team continues to build a unique biotech and realize the full potential of its pipeline with a differentiated, first-in-class product candidate in the late-stage of pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials addressing a real need for wet AMD patients.”
