Baudax Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:BXRX), a pharmaceutical company focused on
therapeutics for acute care settings, today announced the
appointment of Richard S. Casten, CPA, MBA as Chief Financial
Officer. In this role, Mr. Casten will be responsible for leading
and directing the financial activities of the Company. Mr. Casten
brings to Baudax 25 years of diversified financial experience
across pharmaceutical, Fortune 500 consumer products and public
accounting. He replaces Ryan D. Lake, CPA who is transitioning to
full time Chief Financial Officer for Recro.
“I am delighted to welcome Richard to the Baudax
team and believe his expertise and leadership skills will be
critically important to us as we continue to execute on the
commercial rollout of ANJESO® in the U.S. and pursue our ongoing
growth initiatives,” said Gerri Henwood, President and Chief
Executive Officer of Baudax Bio. “Richard is a proven leader in our
industry and his extensive financial experience will be a valuable
addition to the Company.”
Ms. Henwood continued, “The Board and I wish to
express our sincere gratitude to Ryan for his many contributions
and service and wish him well in his role as full time Chief
Financial Officer at Recro.”
Mr. Casten commented: “Baudax is an exciting
growth story and an emerging leader in the acute care setting. The
team has been making great strides since its launch toward bringing
ANJESO to patients in the U.S. and I am pleased to be joining at
such a pivotal time. I look forward to working with the entire
leadership team and contributing to the Company’s future
success.”
Prior to joining Baudax, Mr. Casten served as
Vice President of Finance, Controller and Treasurer at Lupin
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Previous to Lupin, Mr. Casten served in roles
of increasing responsibility at Endo International plc, culminating
in his role as Senior Director, Financial Planning and Analysis.
Prior to Endo, he served in various financial roles at the Campbell
Soup Company. Mr. Casten spent the initial ten years of his career
in public accounting, with eight years at Ernst & Young LLP,
rising to a Senior Manager, Assurance and Advisory Business
Services, and at Fishbein & Company as an Assurance Staff
Accountant. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business and
Economics, with a major in Accounting, from Lehigh University and a
Master’s in Business Administration from the Johnson School at
Cornell University. Mr. Casten is a Certified Public Accountant in
both Pennsylvania and California and is a member of American and
Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Inducement Grant under NASDAQ Listing
Rule 5635(c)(4)
In connection with the hiring of Mr. Casten, the
Compensation Committee of Baudax Bio’s Board of Directors approved
an inducement grant of stock options to purchase an aggregate of
270,000 shares of Baudax Bio’s common stock and restricted stock
units covering 100,000 shares of Baudax Bio’s common stock, with a
grant date of March 8, 2021. The equity award was granted pursuant
to the Nasdaq Rule 5635(c)(4) inducement grant exception as a
component of Mr. Casten’s employment compensation and was granted
as an inducement material to his acceptance of employment with
Baudax Bio.
The options have an exercise price equal to the
closing price of Baudax Bio’s common stock as reported by Nasdaq on
March 8, 2021. The options have a ten-year term and vest over four
years, with 25% of the number of shares underlying the stock option
vesting on the one-year anniversary of the grant date and the
remaining shares vesting monthly over 36 months thereafter. The
restricted stock units vest annually over four years. The equity
award is subject to Mr. Casten’s continued service with Baudax Bio
through the applicable vesting dates.
About
ANJESO®
ANJESO (meloxicam) injection is a proprietary,
long-acting, preferential COX-2 inhibitor that possesses analgesic,
anti-inflammatory and antipyretic activities, which are believed to
be related to the inhibition of cyclooxygenase type 2 pathway
(COX-2) and subsequent reduction in prostaglandin biosynthesis.
ANJESO was launched in the U.S. in June 2020 following its approval
by the Food and Drug Administration in February 2020. ANJESO is
indicated for the management of moderate to severe pain, alone or
in combination with other non-NSAID analgesics. Because of the
delayed onset of analgesia, ANJESO alone is not recommended for use
when rapid onset of analgesia is required. ANJESO is supported by
two pivotal Phase III clinical efficacy trials, a large
double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase III safety trial and four
Phase II clinical efficacy trials, as well as other safety studies.
As a non-opioid, Baudax Bio believes ANJESO has the potential to
overcome many of the issues associated with commonly prescribed
opioid therapeutics, including respiratory depression,
constipation, excessive nausea and vomiting, as well as having no
addictive potential, while maintaining meaningful analgesic effects
for relief of pain. ANJESO was designed using the
NanoCrystal® platform, a technology that enables enhanced
bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drug compounds.
NanoCrystal® is a registered trademark of Alkermes Pharma
Ireland Limited (APIL).
About Baudax Bio
Baudax Bio is a pharmaceutical company focused
on therapeutics for acute care settings. The launch of Baudax Bio’s
first commercial product ANJESO® began in June 2020 following its
approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in February 2020.
ANJESO is a once daily IV NSAID with preferential Cox-2 activity,
which has successfully completed three Phase III clinical trials,
including two pivotal efficacy trials, a large double-blind Phase
III safety trial and other studies for the management of moderate
to severe pain. In addition to ANJESO, Baudax Bio has a pipeline of
other pharmaceutical assets including two novel neuromuscular
blocking agents (NMBAs) and a proprietary chemical reversal agent
specific to these NMBAs which is currently in preclinical studies,
and intranasal dexmedetomidine which is being developed for
possible uses in pain or sedation. For more information, please
visit www.baudaxbio.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward
Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking
statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Such
forward-looking statements reflect Baudax Bio’s expectations about
its future performance and opportunities that involve substantial
risks and uncertainties. When used herein, the words “anticipate,”
“believe,” “estimate,” “may,” “upcoming,” “plan,” “target,” “goal,”
“intend,” and “expect,” and similar expressions, as they relate to
Baudax Bio or its management, are intended to identify such
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are
based on information available to Baudax Bio as of the date of
publication on this internet site and are subject to a number of
risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause Baudax
Bio’s performance to differ materially from those expressed in, or
implied by, these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking
statements are subject to risks and uncertainties including, among
other things, the ongoing economic and social consequences of the
COVID-19 pandemic, including any adverse impact on the commercial
launch of ANJESO® or disruption in supply chain, Baudax Bio’s
ability to maintain regulatory approval for ANJESO, Baudax Bio’s
ability to successfully commercialize ANJESO; the acceptance of
ANJESO by the medical community, including physicians, patients,
health care providers and hospital formularies; Baudax Bio’s
ability and that of Baudax Bio’s third party manufacturers to
successfully scale-up our commercial manufacturing process for
ANJESO, Baudax Bio’s ability to produce commercial supply in
quantities and quality sufficient to satisfy market demand for
ANJESO, Baudax Bio’s ability to raise future financing for
continued product development, payment of milestones and ANJESO
commercialization, Baudax Bio’s ability to pay its debt and satisfy
conditions necessary to access future tranches of debt, Baudax
Bio’s ability to comply with the financial and other covenants
under its credit facility, Baudax Bio’s ability to manage costs and
execute on our operational and budget plans, the accuracy of Baudax
Bio’s estimates of the potential market for ANJESO, Baudax Bio’s
ability to achieve its financial goals; and Baudax Bio’s ability to
obtain, maintain and successfully enforce adequate patent and other
intellectual property protection. These forward-looking statements
should be considered together with the risks and uncertainties that
may affect our business and future results included in our filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. These
forward-looking statements are based on information currently
available to us, and we assume no obligation to update any
forward-looking statements except as required by applicable
law.
CONTACT:
Investor Relations Contact:Argot PartnersSam Martin / Claudia
Styslinger(212) 600-1902baudaxbio@argotpartners.com
Media Contact:Argot PartnersDavid Rosen(212)
600-1902david.rosen@argotpartners.com
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