Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. has appointed Paul Biondi as the company's senior vice president, head of Business Development. The announcement was made Thursday, Oct. 15. On the same day, the company also agreed to collaborate and exclusively license Five Prime Therapeutics Inc. to develop and commercialize Five Prime's antibody program for cancer treatment.
As Biondi assumes the role of Bristol-Myers Squibb's SVP, he is to report to Chief Financial Officer Charlie Bancroft and will lead the development of strategic collaborations and seek scientific innovations in various fields including commercial, development, discovery and technology platforms to complement the company's internal R&D pipeline, Market Watch has learned.
"Paul has established himself as a dynamic and collaborative leader at Bristol-Myers Squibb and made significant contributions over the past 10 years to our success in R&D and business development," Bancroft said. "With deep knowledge of our R&D strategy and portfolio, strong business expertise and understanding of the healthcare landscape, Paul is the ideal leader to continue our pursuit of external innovation that helps Bristol-Myers Squibb develop and deliver transformational medicines for patients with serious diseases."
Meanwhile, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Five Prime has entered an over a billion licensing deal. According to Reuters, Five Prime will receive $350 million upfront and potential development as well as regulatory milestone payouts of up to $1.74 billion.
The more than a billion dollar payment is for the program that includes the drug component codenamed "FPA008," which is in Phase 2 development belonging to a new class of drugs called immunotherapies. The drug is designed to harness body's own immune system to fight cancer.
Both Bristol-Myers Squibb and Five Prime Therapeutics Inc. announced that the global deal includes additional double-digit royalties on future sales and an option to co-promote in the United States.
Aside from Five Prime's internal pipeline assets in immuno-oncology, which partnered with Bristol-Myers Squibb, it also operates BioPharmaceuticals. It products are manufactured by its companies in America, Puerto Rico and six foreign countries, which are sold to wholesalers, retail pharmacies, hospitals, government entities and the medical profession, Ledger Gazette noted.
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