Akebia Therapeutics®, Inc. (Nasdaq: AKBA), a biopharmaceutical company with the purpose of bettering the lives of people impacted by kidney disease, today announced David A. Spellman is joining Akebia as its new Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, effective June 29, 2020.
| CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Akebia Therapeutics®, Inc. (Nasdaq: AKBA), a biopharmaceutical company with the purpose of bettering the lives of people impacted by kidney disease, today announced David A. Spellman is joining Akebia as its new Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, effective June 29, 2020.
Spellman will join Akebia from Intarcia Therapeutics, Inc., where he is Chief Financial Officer and Chief Business Officer. Spellman brings with him extensive experience in supporting rapid business growth within corporate finance, treasury, financial planning and analysis, and strategic planning, along with a deep appreciation for Akebia and its mission within the kidney community. “We’re thrilled to welcome Dave to Akebia and believe he will make an immediate impact at this dynamic time in our history,” said John P. Butler, President and Chief Executive Officer of Akebia Therapeutics. “He will play an important leadership role as we continue to advance vadadustat, our oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase (HIF-PH) inhibitor currently in global Phase 3 development for the treatment of anemia due to CKD, and align our financial and business strategies in preparation for the next phase of Akebia’s growth story.” “I can’t imagine a more exciting time to join Akebia,” said Spellman. “Akebia’s unwavering commitment to innovation and advancing patient care is inspiring, and I’m thrilled to become part of it. I look forward to building upon Akebia’s financial performance and leading the finance organization for continued success.” Spellman will succeed Jason A. Amello, who has served as Akebia’s Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer since 2013. Although Amello is stepping down from the position to pursue other professional interests, he will remain with Akebia for a period of time to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities to Spellman and will continue to advise the Company as a consultant thereafter. “On behalf of the Board and everyone at Akebia, I want to thank Jason for his contributions over the past 7 years. Jason has been a great leader and colleague who has helped create tremendous value for our Company,” said Butler. “Thanks to Jason, we have both a strong finance organization and healthy balance sheet that well position us for the future.” Spellman has more than 20 years of strategic and operational finance experience in fast growing companies within the biopharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Prior to joining Intarcia, Spellman served as the Chief Financial Officer of Mersana Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical stage antibody drug conjugate company. From February 2006 to March 2018, Spellman served in a series of roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc., most recently as Vice President, Corporate, Commercial and International Finance. While at Vertex, Spellman helped establish Vertex’s international headquarters, business operations and integrated finance teams in over a dozen countries, and he supported the global pricing, reimbursement and launches of Kalydeco® (ivacaftor) and Orkambi® (lumacaftor/ivacaftor), and the U.S. launch of INCIVEK (telaprevir). Prior to Vertex, Spellman spent four years at Millennium Pharmaceuticals where he held several positions on the Finance team, including operating as a member of the VELCADE ® launch team. Spellman received a B.S. in economics from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. About Akebia Therapeutics About Vadadustat Forward-Looking Statements Investor Contact:
SOURCE Akebia Therapeutics | ||
Company Codes: NASDAQ-NMS:AKBA |
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