Reports: BMS Hematology Head Out After Liso-Cel and CVR Failure

Nadim Ahmed, president of hematology at BMS, is leaving the company to, according to “pursue other opportunities.”

Bristol Myers Squibb failed to achieve its goal of winning regulatory approval for liso-cel by Dec. 31, which meant investors holding the $9 CVR notes that would have paid out $6.4 billion. In the wake of that failure, a senior executive who worked closely with the program is leaving the company.

Nadim Ahmed, president of hematology at BMS, is leaving the company to, according to “pursue other opportunities.” His departure was first reported by FiercePharma, which cited an investor note from Mizuho analyst Salim Syed. Syed had been closely monitoring the saga of the $9 contingent value rights journey. According to the note Syed sent to investors, BMS confirmed Ahmed’s departure.

“I have confirmed w/ BMS that his last day is tomorrow, Friday 1/15. To my best knowledge, Ahmed does not have another job lined up post his departure tomorrow,” Syed wrote in his note.

Not only did Syed confirm the departure, FiercePharma also reported it had spoken with the company about Ahmed’s leaving. Bristol Myers Squibb has not yet put out an official statement.

Ahmed came to BMS through the merger with Celgene. Although liso-cel has yet to be approved, Ahmed has been responsible for the approval of several hematological drugs over the past few years, including beta thalassemia drug Reblozyl, and acute myeloid leukemia treatment Onureg.

But, under Ahmed’s leadership, BMS missed the CVR deadline to approve liso-cel, an investigational chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy designed to target CD19 in B-cell cancers. The drug had been on track for regulatory approval by Nov. 16. However, that timeline had been thrown off by the ongoing global pandemic. In November, Bristol Myers Squibb, which merged with Celgene last year, said COVID-19 delayed travel for U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspectors who were set to inspect a third-party manufacturing facility in Texas before the PDUFA date. Because the regulatory agency could not ensure that manufacturing facility meets its standards, it has deferred potential approval of liso-cel until the inspection can be completed.

Speaking to FiercePharma, Syed speculated that Ahmed was the “fall guy” for BMS and his termination was an appeasement to those who held the CVR notes.

Taking over as head of hematology at BMS will be Chief Commercial Officer Chris Boerner. Ahmed’s duties as head of hematology will be rolled into Boerner’s ongoing responsibilities.

“Bringing the commercial teams together under Chris Boerner’s leadership will build on the strong foundation established since the creation of our new company, and enable accelerated development and deployment of important capabilities,” the company told FiercePharma in an emailed statement.

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