Chief Scientific Officer Pedro Beltran will succeed Eli Wallace as CEO of BridgeBio Oncology Therapeutics, as the board eyes a busy period of clinical advancement in the RAS oncology space.
BridgeBio Oncology Therapeutics CEO Eli Wallace has been let go as the board seeks swifter advancement of the biotech’s pipeline of RAS oncology assets.
“We believe that BBOT is heading towards inflection points across its portfolio,” said Bihua Chen, CEO of Cormorant Asset Management and a BBOT director, in a statement. “This change in leadership reflects our goal to move with urgency to deliver returns for patients and investors alike.”
BBOT’s shares have declined 18% over the past year to $8.76. Wednesday’s news of the leadership change was met with a further slide.
“We think much of the impetus for these changes originates from the belief that the company is not getting adequate credit for their RAS programs relative to other companies with RAS-focused pipelines like [Erasca] or [Revolution Medicines],” Leerink Partners wrote in a Wednesday evening note.
While BBOT has fallen in the past year, Erasca has risen 482% and Revolution Medicines, which just presented widely lauded data in pancreatic cancer, has climbed 77%.
Chief Scientific Officer Pedro Beltran will succeed Wallace, while Senior Vice President of Strategy & Business Development Idan Elmelech has been promoted to chief operating officer.
Neil Kumar, CEO of BridgeBio Pharma, from which BBOT originated in 2024 as a spinout, will also become chair of the oncology-focused biotech’s board. Leerink said this appointment will see the executive take on “more hands-on involvement in the business” at BBOT.
“As BBOT’s programs enter Phase 1b expansions in multiple indications across the RAS and PI3Kα space, the company has recognized Pedro and Idan’s strategic vision, scientific acumen, and leadership capabilities to guide the company through its next phase of growth,” Kumar said in a statement. “This leadership transition is designed to accelerate and focus the development of BBOT’s programs and continue the company’s ethos of putting patients first.”
BBOT is continuing on track with previous guidance, Leerink noted. The company is expecting data updates for three programs in the second half of 2026. But there could be some changes—including business development—afoot.
“We spoke with the company who remain committed to the underlying science and existing pipeline, although they broadly indicated that they would consider external in-licensing opportunities if they were more promising than internal candidates,” Leerink wrote.
Management also told Leerink that “the company has entered a new phase that requires more directed company-building and sharper capital allocation, rather than a change in strategic direction.”
In addition to potential deals, BBOT could also pursue partnering of its existing programs to maximize the development potential of the pipeline. The company would also consider going beyond oncology into vascular malformations.
RAS mutations are behind about 30% of all cancers, with the first targeted treatment by Amgen, called Lumakras, approved by the FDA in 2021. Since then, biotechs like BBOT have been trying to improve on the treatment.
BBOT will present data for its three assets later this year. This includes Phase 1 trials of BBO-8520 in combination with Merck’s Keytruda for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), BBO-11818 for solid tumors and BBO-10203 in breast cancer and colorectal cancer .
“While some investors expressed concern about the implications of the leadership changes announced today, we await the H2 updates to better understand the potential for these programs,” Leerink wrote.
