Safi R. Bahcall, Ph.D., Resigns as President, CEO and Director;
Newly Formed Executive Committee to Act as Principle Executive
Body Until Appointment of New Chief Executive Officer
LEXINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar. 3, 2014--
Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: SNTA) today announced that Safi R.
Bahcall, Ph.D., has resigned as President, Chief Executive Officer and a
member of the Board of Directors, effective immediately, and has been
replaced by a newly formed Executive Committee of the Board. The
Committee will be chaired by Keith R. Gollust, the Company’s Chairman of
the Board of Directors, and include current Director Robert N. Wilson,
retired Vice Chairman of Johnson & Johnson, and newly appointed Director
Paul A. Friedman, M.D., the former Chief Executive Officer of Incyte
Corporation. The committee will serve as the principal executive body
for the Company until such time as a Chief Executive Officer is named.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors of Synta, I would like to thank
Safi for his tremendous contributions to Synta’s development and growth
over the past 12 years,” stated Mr. Gollust. “The Executive Committee
looks forward to working closely with the management team while we
conduct our search for a new chief executive, a process which will
commence immediately. We expect this transition to produce no delay in
our advancement of ganetespib or the HDC platform, which continue to
make important progress in the clinic and the lab.”
Dr. Friedman’s appointment to the Board of Directors is also effective
immediately. He was Chief Executive Officer of Incyte Corporation from
2001 until his retirement in January 2014. He continues to serve as a
director of Incyte as well as Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Durata
Therapeutics, and two privately held companies. He received his AB in
Biology from Princeton University and his MD from Harvard Medical
School, where he served on the faculty until 1991 when he left to join
Merck Research Laboratories.
“We are honored to welcome Dr. Friedman to Synta’s Board of Directors
and Executive Committee,” said Mr. Gollust. “Paul has had a
distinguished career as a biotech industry executive, and we look
forward to the valuable insights and perspectives he will bring to Synta
based on his many years of experience in pharmaceutical research,
development and commercialization."
About Synta Pharmaceuticals
Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on
discovering, developing, and commercializing small molecule drugs to
extend and enhance the lives of patients with severe medical conditions,
including cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. Synta has a unique
chemical compound library, an integrated discovery engine, and a diverse
pipeline of clinical- and preclinical-stage drug candidates with
distinct mechanisms of action and novel chemical structures. All Synta
drug candidates were invented by Synta scientists using our compound
library and discovery capabilities. For more information, please visit www.syntapharma.com
Safe Harbor Statement
This media release may contain forward-looking statements about Synta
Pharmaceuticals Corp. Such forward-looking statements can be identified
by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "will", "would",
"should", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes",
"may", "estimates", "predicts", "projects", or similar expressions
intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are
based on assumptions and subject to risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements, including those described in
"Risk Factors" of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012 as
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Synta undertakes no
obligation to publicly update forward-looking statements, whether
because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as
required by law.
Source: Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Argot Partners
Investors:
Andrea Rabney, 212-600-1494
[email protected]
or
Media:
Eliza
Schleifstein, 917-763-8106
[email protected]
