Akero Therapeutics Appoints Life Sciences Investment Banking Veteran Bill White as Chief Financial Officer and Head of Corporate Development

SAN FRANCISCO, May 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Akero Therapeutics Inc., a biotechnology company developing transformational treatments for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and other serious metabolic diseases, today announced the appointment of Bill White as CFO and Head of Corporate Development.  Mr. White joins Akero from Deutsche Bank, where he was a Managing Director and Head of U.S. Life Sciences Investment Banking.

"Bill rounds out our management team with significant expertise in life sciences business strategy, transaction sourcing and execution, capital raising and capital structure planning," said Andrew Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., President and CEO of Akero. "His depth and breadth of experience will be critical as we develop our lead asset AKR-001, build our pipeline and grow our internal financial capabilities."

"I'm thrilled to join a company that combines a potentially best-in-class therapy for a disease affecting millions, a world-class management team with a proven track record of bringing drugs to market, a sophisticated investor base dedicated to supporting future growth and a strong balance sheet," said Bill White, CFO and Head of Corporate Development of Akero. "These unique company strengths provide a significant opportunity to bring transformative therapies to patients."

Mr. White has spent the past 18 years as a life science-focused investment banker at Deutsche Bank, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. During that time, he has advised on more than $70 billion in M&A and $25 billion in financing transactions. He received a bachelor's degree summa cum laude from Princeton University, a master's degree from Harvard University and a law degree from Columbia University.

About AKR-001
AKR-001 is an Fc-FGF21 fusion protein that has been engineered to mimic the biological activity profile of native FGF21, an endogenous hormone that regulates lipid and energy metabolism, and is secreted throughout the body to alleviate cellular stress.  Observations from clinical trials of AKR-001 and other FGF analogs point to AKR-001's potential to reduce liver fat, cellular stress, inflammation and fibrosis in people with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), as well as to improve risk factors of cardiovascular disease, the principal cause of death among NASH patients.

About Akero Therapeutics
Akero Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of transformative treatments for patients with serious metabolic disease with high unmet medical need by restoring metabolic balance. Akero's lead program, AKR-001, an engineered Fc-FGF21 fusion protein, is being evaluated in clinical trials as a potential leading fibroblast growth factor analog for treatment of NASH, a disease without any approved therapies. For more information, please visit https://akerotx.com/.

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SOURCE Akero Therapeutics, Inc.