NewAmsterdam Pharma Appoints John W. Smither to its Board of Directors
07 February 2023 - 12:00AM
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. (Nasdaq: NAMS or “NewAmsterdam
Pharma” or the “Company”), a clinical-stage company focused on the
research and development of transformative oral therapies for major
cardiometabolic diseases, today announced the appointment of John
W. Smither as an independent director to its Board of Directors.
Mr. Smither will also serve as chair of NewAmsterdam Pharma’s Audit
Committee.
“We are so pleased to welcome John to the NewAmsterdam Board of
Directors,” said Michael Davidson, M.D., chief executive officer of
NewAmsterdam Pharma. “His extensive experience in operational and
strategic leadership roles across multiple publicly-traded life
sciences companies will be invaluable to NewAmsterdam Pharma
following our public listing [on NASDAQ]. We welcome John’s
leadership as we continue to advance obicetrapib through multiple
pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials and begin preparations for a
potential commercial launch.”
Most recently, Mr. Smither served as the Chief Financial Officer
(“CFO”) at Arcutis Biotherapeutics, where he was responsible for
all financial aspects of the company’s business, including leading
Arcutis’ successful initial public offering and two capital raises.
Prior to joining Arcutis, Mr. Smither served as the CFO of Sienna
Biopharmaceuticals from April 2018 until March 2019. He also served
as interim CFO for Kite Pharma during its integration with Gilead.
Mr. Smither has 15 years’ experience as a practicing CPA
(inactive), including time spent as an audit partner at Ernst &
Young. Mr. Smither has previously served on the Boards of several
biopharmaceutical companies and currently serves as director at
both eFFECTOR Therapeutics and Applied Molecular Transport. He
holds a B.S. in Business Administration from California State
University, Los Angeles.
“NewAmsterdam is backed by an exceptional leadership team that
has positioned the Company for long-term success, with a robust
capital position to potentially fund operations through all key
milestones and a leading pharmaceutical partner to support
commercialization efforts in Europe,” said Mr. Smither. “I am
thrilled to join the NewAmsterdam Pharma’s board at such an
exciting time, as the Company continues to enroll patients in
multiple pivotal Phase 3 trials for obicetrapib, a potentially safe
and effective oral therapy that could change the treatment paradigm
for cardiovascular disease.”
About NewAmsterdam
NewAmsterdam (Nasdaq: NAMS) is a clinical-stage
biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to improve patient care
in populations with metabolic diseases where currently approved
therapies have not been sufficiently successful or well tolerated.
NewAmsterdam is investigating obicetrapib, an oral, low-dose and
once-daily CETP inhibitor, as the preferred LDL-C lowering therapy
to be used as an adjunct to maximally tolerated statin therapy for
high-risk cardiovascular disease (“CVD”) patients. Results from
NewAmsterdam’s ROSE Phase 2b trial (presented at AHA Scientific
Sessions in 2021) included observations that patients receiving
obicetrapib 10 mg experienced a median reduction in LDL-C of 51%
versus baseline in patients on high-intensity statin therapy (vs. a
7% reduction in the placebo arm). Based in the Netherlands,
NewAmsterdam recently completed a business combination with Frazier
Lifesciences Acquisition Corporation (“FLAC”), a special purpose
acquisition company sponsored by an affiliate of Frazier Healthcare
Partners. Proceeds from this transaction were approximately $328
million, prior to deducting transaction expenses, comprising
approximately $93 million in funds from the former FLAC trust
account and approximately $235 million from the concurrent,
oversubscribed PIPE financing, which was co-led by Frazier
Healthcare Partners and Bain Capital Life Sciences and included
leading institutional investors. In June 2022, NewAmsterdam entered
into an exclusive licensing agreement with the Menarini Group for
the commercialization of obicetrapib in Europe, while retaining all
rights to commercialize obicetrapib, if approved, in the rest of
the world, as well as rights to develop certain forms of
obicetrapib for other diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. For
more information, please visit: www.newamsterdampharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this document that are not
historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the
safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally
are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,”
“estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,”
“would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,”
“outlook” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future
events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters.
These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to,
statements regarding the Company’s cash runway, the therapeutic and
curative potential of the Company’s product candidate, the
Company’s clinical trials and the achievement or timing of
regulatory approvals. These statements are based on various
assumptions, whether or not identified in this document, and on the
current expectations of the Company’s management and are not
predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements
are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to
serve as and must not be relied on as a guarantee, an assurance, a
prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability.
Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to
predict and may differ from assumptions. Many actual events and
circumstances are beyond the control of the Company. These
forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties, including changes in domestic and foreign business,
market, financial, political, and legal conditions; risks relating
to the uncertainty of the projected financial information with
respect to the Company; risks related to the approval of the
Company’s product candidate and the timing of expected regulatory
and business milestones; ability to negotiate definitive
contractual arrangements with potential customers; the impact of
competitive product candidates; ability to obtain sufficient supply
of materials; the impact of COVID-19; global economic and political
conditions, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict; the effects of
competition on the Company’s future business; and those factors
described in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s
registration statement on Form F-1, as amended (File No.
333-268888) and other documents filed from time to time. Additional
risks related to the Company’s business include, but are not
limited to: uncertainty regarding outcomes of the Company’s ongoing
clinical trials, particularly as they relate to regulatory review
and potential approval for its product candidate; risks associated
with the Company’s efforts to commercialize a product candidate;
the Company’s ability to negotiate and enter into definitive
agreements on favorable terms, if at all; the impact of competing
product candidates on the Company’s business; intellectual property
related claims; the Company’s ability to attract and retain
qualified personnel; ability to continue to source the raw
materials for its product candidate. If any of these risks
materialize or the Company’s assumptions prove incorrect, actual
results could differ materially from the results implied by these
forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that the
Company does not presently know or that the Company currently
believes are immaterial that could also cause actual results to
differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. In
addition, forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s
expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of
the date of this document and are qualified in their entirety by
reference to the cautionary statements herein. The Company
anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the
Company’s assessments to change. These forward-looking statements
should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s assessment
as of any date subsequent to the date of this communication.
Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the
forward-looking statements. Neither the Company nor any of its
affiliates undertakes any obligation to update these
forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.
Media Contact
Spectrum Science on behalf of NewAmsterdam Carmen Lopez P: 1
773-306-6285 clopez@spectrumscience.com
Investor Contact
Stern Investor Relations on behalf of NewAmsterdam Hannah
Deresiewicz P: 1 212-362-1200 hannah.deresiewicz@sternir.com
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