SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Catalyst Biosciences, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on engineering and developing novel therapeutic protease products, today appointed Erik Wiberg as the company’s Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Wiberg brings a significant financial and business background in the life sciences sector especially in the areas of business development, M&A and finance.
Mr. Wiberg joins Catalyst from ALZA Corporation where he was most recently Vice President of Business Development. At ALZA, he participated in the company’s $12.8 billion sale to Johnson & Johnson in 2001, ALZA’s $700M acquisition of SEQUUS Pharmaceuticals and spearheaded multiple drug development and licensing agreements. Following ALZA’s sale to J&J, he was a member of both the ALZA executive committee and the J&J Pharmaceutical business development leadership team.
Prior to ALZA, Mr. Wiberg was in the financial services sector focusing on healthcare companies. He held equity research analyst positions with Smith Barney, Inc., Hambrecht and Quist and UBS Securities, covering a broad range of healthcare services companies. He started his career in investment banking, handling biotech, healthcare services, medical device and pharmaceutical company transactions. Mr. Wiberg holds degrees in Finance and Accounting from the Wharton School of Business and in Computer Science Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
“We are extremely pleased to have Erik join Catalyst. I believe his demonstrated success in finance and negotiations will be a major asset to the company,” said Nassim Usman, Ph.D., CEO, Catalyst Biosciences. “Our recent deal with Wyeth is a clear indication that the pharmaceutical industry is recognizing the value of our Alterase(TM) therapeutics platform to engineer novel protease drug candidates. Hiring a seasoned CFO to handle the increasing interest in our technology and intellectual property is a key step forward for the company.”
“I am very excited to join the Catalyst team, and look forward to helping build the company,” said Mr. Wiberg. “Catalyst has an outstanding opportunity to develop a new and exciting class of biopharmaceuticals comparable in depth and scope to monoclonal antibodies.”
About Catalyst Biosciences:
Catalyst Biosciences is developing the next generation of biopharmaceuticals by harnessing the catalytic power of engineered proteases to attack a variety of protein targets associated with causing disease. Catalyst’s discovery platform rapidly creates and optimizes tailor-made protease drug candidates, called Alterase therapeutics, that are applicable across a broad spectrum of diseases. Initially, Catalyst is focusing its product development efforts on Alterase drug candidates that prevent inflammation associated with acute cardiovascular disorders and one other undisclosed disease target. The company expects to leverage its expertise in protease design to address additional classes of disease targets in the future. Catalyst is backed by leading venture firms including Burrill & Company, HealthCare Ventures, Morgenthaler Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund, RCT Ventures and Sofinnova Ventures.
For more information, please visit www.catbio.com . Catalyst Biosciences Nassim Usman, Ph.D., CEO +1.650.266.8674 nusman@catbio.com For Catalyst Biosciences Jennifer Larson +1.415.409.2729 jlarson@labfive.com
Catalyst Biosciences, Inc.
CONTACT: Nassim Usman, Ph.D., CEO of Catalyst Biosciences,+1-650-266-8674, or nusman@catbio.com; or Jennifer Larson of Labfive,+1-415-409-2729, or jlarson@labfive.com, for Catalyst Biosciences
Web site: http://www.catbio.com/
