December 16, 2014
By Riley McDermid, BioSpace.com Breaking News Editor
Actavis Plc , which last month agreed to buy Allergan Inc. for $66 billion, is conducting a wholesale cleanse of its upper ranks after it takes over, saying Tuesday it will replace Allergan’s current upper management with its own internal choices.
The firm said that Brent Saunders will continue to lead Actavis as CEO and president and a member of the board of directors. Paul Bisaro will remain executive chairman of the newly-combined company’s Board of Directors.
But David Pyott, Allergan’s current CEO, has no role that has been decided yet, said David Belian, a spokesman for Actavis, and all other C-level executives are out. The sole exception is Douglas Ingram, Allergan’s president and former head of its Europe, Africa and Middle East unit, who will stay on as an adviser to Saunders.
However, Fierce Biotech reported that after “extensive discussions” with Allergan Pyott will walk away with a $34,955,619 golden parachute.
“We are committed to realizing the full potential of the historic combination of Actavis and Allergan beginning on Day 1, and announcing the proposed leadership of the combined company is a critical step in achieving that objective,” said Saunders in a statement. “The management structure we are announcing today will ensure that we capitalize on the value of Allergan‘s world-renowned businesses and the proven track record of the leaders of its powerful and critically important franchises.”
New Jersey-based Actavis has its legal address in Dublin and the deal will make Actavis one of the world’s 10 biggest drugmakers, including exclusive rights to blockbuster cosmetic drug Botox.
“At close, this combined leadership will ensure that the new company capitalizes on our expanded global commercial footprint, maintains our continued dominance as a world leader in generics and that we elevate our commitment to brand innovation and development by making brand R&D directly report to the CEO level,” said Saunders.
The deal is slated to close in mid-2015 and will produce three units, International Brands, Branded Pharma and Allergan Medical. Actavis said Tuesday it will invest $1 billion in research and development under a combined department led by Actavis’s C. David Nicholson.
“Although we are acting rapidly in announcing these appointments, we are making them following extensive discussions with [Pyott] and his executive leadership team,” he said. “We believe that by announcing the proposed structure of the combined organization our shareholders, customers and employee teams will better appreciate our commitment to create the most dynamic company in Growth Pharma and will share our confidence in seamless execution of this combination beginning on Day 1.”
