BioNTech’s leadership transition was announced earlier this year, with CEO Ugur Sahin and CMO Özlem Türeci leaving to start a new mRNA company. Guido Oelkers of Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB will take over as CEO in early 2027.
The board of famed mRNA company BioNTech has chosen Guido Oelkers of Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB as its new CEO, to succeed founding leader Ugur Sahin.
Oelkers will take the helm by February 1, 2027, as Sahin and Chief Medical Officer Özlem Türeci leave BioNTech to form a new mRNA-focused biotech. A search for Türeci’s replacement is ongoing, according to the Monday announcement.
The CEO transition was announced in March, with Sahin and Türeci expected to transfer leadership of the now-commercial company to return to what they do best: next-generation mRNA therapeutics.
“For us, this is the right time to prepare to hand over the baton,” Sahin said at the time.
Oelkers arrives from Swedish Orphan Biovitrum, or Sobi, which specializes in hematology, immunology and specialty care. The company markets Tryngolza for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) and the antibody-drug conjugate Zynlonta for two types of lymphoma.
“His expertise in scaling innovation-driven organizations in a focused and capital-efficient manner, coupled with his deep knowledge in relevant markets, will position the Company well to deliver on its key objectives to become a multi-product company, and continue BioNTech’s remarkable success story,” Helmut Jeggle, chairman of BioNTech’s supervisory board, said in a statement.
The new CEO will take over at a critical time. After rising amid the global pandemic with the mRNA know-how to swiftly develop a life-saving vaccine, BioNTech has been working on its next act. The key focus has become oncology, with a major partnership with Bristol Myers Squibb pushing the PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody pumitamig toward the market. The therapy is currently in dozens of clinical trials for multiple indications.
At the American Society of Clinical Oncology in June, the partners revealed Phase 2 data showing that more than half of patients with squamous non-small cell lung cancer given the therapy had a confirmed objective response rate.
Oelkers will help transition BioNTech to a company with multiple commercial products beyond the Pfizer-partnered COVID-19 vaccine. But BioNTech has been going through some growing pains, with multiple manufacturing facilities that had been sitting idle or underutilized forced to close. The measures led to thousands of layoffs.
“BioNTech is in a pivotal phase as the company focuses on advancing its diversified pipeline into approved products and sustainable medical benefits for patients,” Sahin said. “With Guido Oelkers taking over, I feel confident that BioNTech is in a strong position to realize its vision.”
