EMERYVILLE, Calif., April 1, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Neurobiological Technologies, Inc. (NTI(R)) , today announced that, effective April 1, 2008, Matthew M. Loar has been appointed Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Loar will be based at the Company’s headquarters in Emeryville. Mr. Loar joins the company from Osteologix, where he has served as Chief Financial Officer since 2006.
“Matt has a proven track record as a chief financial officer, and we will look to his expertise to help guide our financial and business strategy,” said Paul E. Freiman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Neurobiological Technologies. “His wealth of experience in helping to run several businesses combined with his knowledge of industry accounting requirements, SEC compliance and the biotech investment community will be real assets as our team continues to advance our strategic vision.”
Mr. Loar is a Certified Public Accountant and has over twenty years experience in finance and accounting. Mr. Loar has a strong track record working with growing pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and has played a key role in several major corporate collaborations, successfully completing public and private equity financings and implementing the provisions of Sarbanes-Oxley Act at a public biotechnology company.
“NTI has a strong management team, a unique product development strategy, and tremendous potential for their phase 3 investigational drug, Viprinex(TM).
I look forward to becoming a key contributor to their future growth,” said Mr. Loar. “NTI’s efforts to develop new and improved central nervous system therapeutics are indeed exciting, and I’m anxious to start working with the other members of NTI’s team to maximize the organization’s overall potential.”
Since the fall of 2006, Mr. Loar held the position of Chief Financial Officer at Osteologix, Inc. Prior to his tenure at Osteologix, he spent eleven years with Genelabs Technologies, Inc. where he held several positions, including Chief Financial Officer, Vice President of Finance and Controller. Earlier in his career, from 1991 through 1995, Mr. Loar was Corporate Accounting Manager for an international manufacturing company with approximately $500 million in annual product sales. From 1986 to 1991 he was audit manager with Coopers & Lybrand, a predecessor firm to PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Mr. Loar graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and is a member of the American Institute of CPAs. He is a member of Financial Executives International and for two years served as treasurer of their Silicon Valley Chapter.
As an inducement to his entering into employment with the Company, Mr. Loar was awarded an option in accordance with NASDAQ Marketplace Rule 4350(i)(1)(A)(iv) to purchase up to 150,000 shares of the Company’s common stock outside of the Company’s stockholder-approved equity incentive plans, at an exercise price per share equal to the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on April 1, 2008. The inducement option, which will have a term of 10 years, will vest with respect to one-eighth of the underlying shares six months after the date of grant and then with respect to the remaining shares ratably over the next 42 months.
About Neurobiological Technologies
Neurobiological Technologies, Inc, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel, first-in-class agents for central nervous system conditions and other serious unmet medical needs. The Company’s most advanced product candidate in phase 3 clinical testing is Viprinex(TM) (ancrod), a novel agent with multiple mechanisms that is specifically designed to expand the treatment window for treating acute ischemic stroke, one of the most prevalent, debilitating and costly diseases in the world for which there are few acceptable treatment options. Its pipeline includes other drug candidates in early-stage development, including a first-of-its-kind drug for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
CONTACT: Paul E. Freiman, President and Chief Executive Officer of
Neurobiological Technologies, Inc., +1-510-595-6000
Web site: http://www.ntii.com/
