Yumanity, Richard Peters
In September, Richard Peters, who recently resigned as CEO of Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, will become the CEO of Yumanity Therapeutics, a company focusing on discovering treatments for Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Industry veteran Peters has previously held leadership positions in companies including Onyx Pharmaceuticals and Amgen, as well as serving as the global head of rare diseases at Genzyme.
Yumanity’s founder and current CEO, Tony Coles, who previously held the role of CEO of Onyx and worked together with Peters at the company, will transition to the role of executive chairperson of the board of directors.
Coles welcomed Peters by stating that he has the skills and background to guide the company’s pipeline through early clinical development “in a way that will set the company up for near-term shareholder value creation and longer-term success.”
“Having worked closely with Richard previously at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, I know we have found the right leader,” he added.
On his side, Peters commented that “having worked with Tony over the years, I am delighted to have this opportunity to collaborate with him,” and added that “neurodegenerative diseases represent the greatest therapeutic challenge of our time.”