Julian Hanak, Chief Development Officer, appointed acting Chief Executive Officer of Purespring.
Richard Francis to remain as a Non-executive Board Director of Purespring.
24 November 2022 - Purespring Therapeutics, a pioneering gene therapy company focused on transforming the treatment of kidney diseases, announces the appointment of its Chief Executive Officer, Richard Francis, as Chief Executive Officer of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, effective 1 January 2023.
Richard will remain on the Board of Directors of Purespring. Julian Hanak, Purespring’s Chief Development Officer, has been appointed acting Chief Executive Officer of Purespring.
Julian is an experienced biopharmaceutical executive with expertise in gene therapy product development and experience across large pharma, start-ups and in the CDMO industry. He has worked in product development, business development, CMC outsourcing, clinical trials supply and GMP. Prior to his appointment at Purespring, Julian served at Biogen as SVP and Global Head of CMC for NightstaRx Therapeutics, following its acquisition by Biogen and, previously, was a Board member at NightstaRx Therapeutics, where he played a role in supporting the company through multiple funding rounds. He was also a member of the Board at Novasep through its acquisition by ThermoFisher Scientific.
Chris Hollowood, Purespring’s Chairman, commented:
“Richard is an experienced, motivated, and dynamic leader who I have greatly enjoyed working with to build Purespring. His recruitment to lead Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd is a testament to the quality of his leadership. I have worked with Julian for many years, at first NightstaRx and now Purespring, and I am delighted that he has agreed to lead the business in its next phase of growth. I would like to thank Richard for his energy and commitment and everything he has done to establish Purespring, build a world-class team, and scale the Company up to put it in the best position to move into clinical development. I look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role as a director.”
Richard Francis, Chief Executive Officer of Purespring, commented:
“Helping found and scale up a company pioneering a revolution in kidney disease has been an absolute privilege and I’ve loved working with this passionate team to deliver durable solutions to people with kidney disease. Purespring’s team has been relentlessly focused on addressing the vacuum of innovation in this area and we have succeeded in creating a true gene therapy platform built around its unique ability to target the podocyte.”
“I leave Purespring in great shape, on the path to clinical development and match fit for future success. Julian is a hugely experienced leader and I’m confident Purespring is in good hands with him at the helm. I look forward to supporting Purespring’s continued success as a Board member.”
Julian Hanak, Chief Development Officer of Purespring, added:
“I’d like to thank Richard for the leadership that has helped drive Purespring forwards to achieve so much in such a short time, building a great team and pipeline. I’m looking forward to leading the company in the next phase as we continue our development of transformational therapies for kidney diseases.”