Nitec Pharma AG Announces Appointments of CEO & CFO in Preparation for Launch of Lodotra(R)

REINACH, Switzerland, September 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Nitec Pharma AG, today announced the appointments of Anders Harfstrand as Chief Executive Officer, and Andrea Buscaglia as Chief Financial Officer. Both executives bring with them a wealth of strategic knowledge and expertise which complement that of the existing management team. The appointments will enable Nitec to drive the commercialization of its late-stage product, Lodotra (R) and progress the development of its pipeline.

Dr. Harfstrand and Mr. Buscaglia will complete Nitec's management team. They will work alongside the company's co-founders Jochen Mattis, Executive VP of Marketing and Sales and Dr. Achim Schaffler, Executive VP of R&D and Technical operations.

"I am extremely pleased that Anders has joined the Nitec Pharma team" said Dr. Karl Nagler, Member of Nitec's board of directors and Principal at Atlas Venture. "He has tremendous worldwide operational experience and impressive expertise in sales, marketing and business development. With Anders joining Nitec's management Board, we expect continued strong performance from Nitec going forward."

Dr. Harfstrand added, "I look forward to working with Nitec's experienced team to make Lodotra (R) a great success in treating rheumatoid arthritis. We intend to establish Nitec as a reliable partner for patients, physicians and investors by developing leading products and delivering innovative and cost-effective solutions for chronic inflammatory diseases and pain."

Commenting on Mr. Buscaglia's appointment, Jochen Mattis stated, "Andrea will be a great asset to our management team. During his career, he has been involved in numerous financial transactions, including several IPOs, giving him the experience to give strategic input and direction to our business. We are convinced that Andrea`s expertise will support Nitec during this exciting phase in the company's development."

Dr. Harfstrand brings to Nitec Pharma almost 20 years of senior level pharmaceutical experience. Most recently he was Senior Executive Vice President at Serono, and previously held several executive positions in Pfizer and Pharmacia. He has an outstanding track record in building Sales and Marketing teams in the areas of Metabolic Diseases, Ophthalmology, Neurology and Reproductive Health. During his career, Dr Harfstrand has been responsible for the development of pharmaceutical brands in many global markets, including Europe, USA and Japan. He graduated with a degree in medicine from the Karolinska Institutet in 1983, and gained a PhD in neuropharmacology in 1987.

Mr. Buscaglia joins Nitec Pharma from Merck Serono, where he was Vice President Corporate Finance and Business Development for seven years. At Serono he was actively involved in the July 2000 $2bn equity offering and New York Stock Exchange listing, Investor Relations activities, as well as in identification, valuation, and execution of M&A and licensing transactions. Between 1992 and 2000, Mr. Buscaglia was an investment banker with S.G.Warburg (now UBS), Deutsche Bank and Citigroup. During this eight year period he participated in multiple M&A and Equity Capital Markets transactions, including Initial Public Offerings, Secondary Offerings and Public Tender Offers. Between 1988 and 1992 he was an auditor with Arthur Andersen & Co. Mr. Buscaglia graduated from the Bocconi University in Milan in 1987 with a degree in Business Administration and qualified as a Certified Public Accountant in 1988.

About Nitec Pharma AG:

Nitec Pharma is a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the development and commercialization of optimized medicines for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases and pain. Nitec is headquartered in Reinach, Switzerland, with a subsidiary in Mannheim, Germany. The Company's most advanced product is Lodotra (R), a circadian cytokine modulator for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Nitec was originally founded in 2004 as a spin-out of Merck KGaA. The Company is financed by Atlas Venture, Global Life Science Ventures and NGN Capital. For further information about Nitec Pharma please visit http://www.nitecpharma.com

This press release contains specific forward-looking statements, e.g. statements including terms like believe, assume, expect or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may result in a substantial divergence between the actual results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and those explicitly or implicitly presumed in these statements. Against the background of these uncertainties readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The company assumes no responsibility to update forward-looking statements or to adapt them to future events or developments.

CONTACT: Further Information: Dr. Anders Harfstrand, CEO, Nitec Pharma AG,Tel: +41-61-715-20-46, Mobile: +41-79-83493-20, E-mail:anders.harfstrand@nitecpharma.com; Jochen Mattis, EVP Marketing & Sales/BD,Nitec Pharma AG, Tel: +41-61-715-20-47, Mobile: +49-151-17-43-33-77,E-mail: jochen.mattis@nitecpharma.com; Dr. Karl Nagler, Principal, AtlasVenture Munich, Widenmayestrasse 16, D-80538 Munich, Germany, Tel:+49-(0)89-4587450, E-mail: knaegler@atlasventure.com