NEW YORK, March 18, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Motif Bio plc (AIM/Nasdaq: MTFB), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specialising in developing novel antibiotics, today announced that Richard C. E. Morgan has tendered his resignation as Non-executive Chairman and is stepping down from the Board of Directors, effective immediately, to focus on other business commitments. Bruce Williams, a long-standing Board member, has been appointed Interim Chairman. Mr. Morgan has agreed to remain available to the Company in the coming months on an as needed basis to ensure a smooth transition.
“On behalf of Motif Bio and the Board of Directors, I thank Richard for his mentorship, dedicated service and support over many years since the foundation of Motif Bio and wish him the best in his future endeavours,” said Graham Lumsden, Chief Executive Officer of Motif Bio. “We are delighted that Bruce has agreed to step into the interim Chairman role. He is a strong leader who has held senior executive positions, particularly in strategic product planning and commercialisation, at a number of biopharmaceutical companies. I look forward to continuing to work with him as Motif Bio seeks to advance iclaprim towards approval. We have submitted a meeting request and package to the FDA and expect to work collaboratively with the Agency over the coming weeks.”
Bruce Williams, Interim Chairman of the Board of Motif Bio, said: “I am pleased to have the opportunity to serve in this role. All of us on the Board have full confidence in the management team and are convinced that the best path forward for iclaprim will be found.”
Bruce Williams has significant operational experience in the biopharmaceutical industry and has held senior leadership positions at both large pharmaceutical firms and start-up biotechs. He served as Senior Vice President, Global Business Management at Enzon Pharmaceuticals, where he led the company’s commercial functions. Prior to that, he was Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing at Genta Incorporated, where he built and led the sales and marketing function and negotiated a licensing and co-development/co-marketing agreement with Aventis for the company’s lead product. He was previously Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Celgene Corporation, where he built the company’s commercial and distribution infrastructure to support the launch of its first product, Thalomid (thalidomide). Earlier in his career, Mr. Williams was Executive Director, Marketing at Ortho Biotech (subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson), where he led the marketing of Procrit (epoetin alfa) from pre-approval through its first year of $1 billion in sales. In addition to Motif Bio, Mr. Williams currently serves on the board of Afaxys Incorporated. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of Rutgers Preparatory School and is Treasurer and Trustee of the Independent School Chair Association. He holds an MBA from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from Syracuse University.
About Motif Bio
Motif Bio plc (AIM/Nasdaq: MTFB) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel antibiotics designed to be effective against serious and life-threatening infections caused by multi-drug resistant Gram-positive bacteria, including MRSA. The Company’s lead product candidate is iclaprim. Motif Bio is seeking approval of iclaprim from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI). More than 3.6 million patients with ABSSSI are hospitalised annually in the U.S. It is estimated that up to 26% of hospitalized ABSSSI patients have renal impairment.
