Recordati CEO Dies; Drug Giant Urgently Names New CEO
August 16, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
MILAN, Italy – Following the death of its longtime chief executive officer Giovanni Recordati, the Italian specialty pharmaceutical company named for the family, tapped a new chief executive, his step-brother Andrea Recordati, who had been serving as chief operations officer.
Shares of Recordati S.P.A., which are sold on the Italian Stock Exchange, have been on a bit of a roller-coaster ride this morning following the announcement of Giovanni Recordati’s death and the appointment of his step-brother as CEO. Shares of the company are currently trading at €27.80.
Recordati was appointed to his new position today following an emergency meeting of the company’s board of directors, the company said. Andrea Recordati joined the company in 1998 as a project leader with a goal of improving sales force productivity and increase marketing effectiveness. He steadily took on more responsibilities within the company and in 2013 was appointed as chief operating officer.
“My priority will be to proceed along the lines of the development strategy outlined by Giovanni Recordati with the objective of continuing the growth of the group,” Andrea Recordati said in a statement.
Recordati said the company, which employs about 4,000 people across Europe, Africa and the United States, will maintain a recent organizational structure the company implemented comprised of managers with “consolidated experience and an in-depth knowledge of the company who have contributed effectively” to the company’s success. He said the new management team will continue to support the vision of the company.
Additionally, the company appointed Alberto Recordati as chairman of the board of directors.
Giovanni Recordati’s death came after a bout with a long illness, Reuters reported. There have been rumors the family-owned company, which was founded 90 years ago, could be up for sale. However, the family has repeatedly denied that, Reuters said. The company posted revenue of €1.04 billion in 2015.
Recordati specializes in the development of treatments for orphan and rare diseases as well as urogenital, such as are cancers, hepatic porphyria, Wilson’s disease and patent ductus arteriosus.
Last year, the company worked with California-based Apricus Biosciences, Inc. to launch sales of erectile dysfunction drug Virirec in Spain and other countries. Spain has one of the largest ED markets in Europe with sales of approximately $85 million in 2014. In addition to Spain, Recordati has license agreements to market the erectile dysfunction drug in Russia, Turkey, Ireland and parts of Africa, as well as other unnamed European countries.