SAN DIEGO, May 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Arena
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARNA) today announced that it has
appointed Amit D. Munshi as
President, Chief Executive Officer and interim principal financial
officer, effective May 11, 2016. Mr.
Munshi will also join Arena's Board of Directors following Arena's
2016 annual stockholders' meeting, which is scheduled for
June 13, 2016.
Mr. Munshi brings to Arena more than 25 years of global
biopharmaceutical industry experience in executive management,
business development, product development and portfolio management.
Harry F. Hixson, Jr., Ph.D., who has
served as Arena's interim Chief Executive Officer and interim
principal financial officer since October
2015 and as a director since 2004, will remain on Arena's
Board of Directors.
"Amit is a seasoned biopharmaceutical executive with the diverse
experience and skill set necessary to lead Arena to its next phase
of growth," said Tina S. Nova,
Ph.D., Arena's Lead Independent Director and Chair of its CEO
Search Committee. "As a company, we have made progress in aligning
our focus with our core strengths over the past several months, and
the Board looks forward to Amit's leadership as we advance our
therapeutic pipeline and drive toward important milestones."
"Additionally, on behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like
to thank Dr. Hixson for his leadership of the company during this
transitional phase," added Dr. Nova.
"I am honored to have the opportunity to lead Arena at this
point in the company's evolution," said Mr. Munshi. "With a
strong research platform, a marketed drug and three compounds
currently in Phase 2 development, I believe Arena has the potential
to deliver significant value while positively impacting the lives
of patients. I look forward to working with Arena's executive team
and Board to advance the company."
Mr. Munshi, age 48, served as President, Chief Executive Officer
and a director of Epirus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a publicly
traded biopharmaceutical company, from May
2012 to May 2016. Prior to Epirus, Mr. Munshi served as
President and Chief Executive Officer of Percivia LLC, a
biotechnology company, from 2011 to 2012, was a co-founder and
served as Chief Business Officer of Kythera Biopharmaceuticals,
Inc., from 2005 to 2010, and held multiple leadership positions at
Amgen Inc. from 1997 to 2005, including General Manager, Nephrology
Europe. Mr. Munshi serves on the boards of Oxeia
Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., and Cytrellis Biosystems, Inc., both
privately held companies. Mr. Munshi holds a B.S. in Economics and
a B.A. in History from the University of
California, Riverside, and an M.B.A. from the Peter F.
Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University.
Inducement Equity Award
In connection with the hiring of Mr. Munshi, the Compensation
Committee of Arena's Board of Directors approved an inducement
stock option grant to Mr. Munshi to purchase 3,800,000 shares of
Arena common stock. The option grant will be effective on
May 11, 2016, and will have an
exercise price per share equal to the closing price of Arena's
common stock on that date. The non-qualified stock option will have
a 7-year term and will vest over four years, with 25% of the shares
subject to the option vesting one year after the commencement of
Mr. Munshi's employment and the remainder of the shares vesting
quarterly over the following three years in equal installments,
subject to Mr. Munshi's continued service with Arena through
the applicable vesting dates. The vesting of the option is subject
to acceleration in certain circumstances as provided in Mr.
Munshi's employment and severance agreements. The stock option
grant is subject to the terms and conditions of Arena's 2013
Long-Term Incentive Plan, as amended, and the stock option
agreement pursuant to which the option is granted.
The stock option is granted as an inducement material to Mr.
Munshi entering into employment with Arena in accordance with
NASDAQ listing Rule 5635(c)(4).
About Arena Pharmaceuticals
Arena embraces the challenge of improving health by seeking to
bring innovative medicines targeting G protein-coupled receptors to
patients. Arena's focus is discovering, developing and
commercializing drugs to address unmet medical needs, and
BELVIQ® (lorcaserin HCl) is Arena's first internally
discovered drug approved for marketing. Arena's US operations are
located in San Diego, California,
and its operations outside of the United
States, including its commercial manufacturing facility, are
located in Zofingen, Switzerland.
For more information, visit Arena's website at
www.arenapharm.com.
Arena Pharmaceuticals® and Arena® are
registered service marks of Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
BELVIQ® is a registered trademark of Arena
Pharmaceuticals GmbH.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such
forward-looking statements include statements about the timing and
significance of Mr. Munshi's appointment as an executive officer
and director; Mr. Munshi's experience and skill set and ability to
lead Arena; Arena's growth, pipeline, future milestones and
potential, including in delivering value and impacting lives; the
timing and terms of Mr. Munshi's equity award; embracing the
challenge of improving health and seeking to bring innovative
medicines to patients; and Arena's focus, plans, goals, strategy,
expectations, research and development programs, and ability to
discover and develop compounds and commercialize drugs. For such
statements, Arena claims the protection of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual events or results may differ
materially from Arena's expectations. Factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, the following: having
adequate funds and other resources and their effective use;
enrollment in the ongoing Phase 2 clinical trials of APD334 and
ralinepag is competitive and challenging, and their progress,
completion and results are uncertain; recruiting and retaining
effective management and other key employees; risks related to
commercializing drugs, including regulatory, product supply,
marketing and use; the focus, efforts and decisions of
collaborators; the entry into, modification or termination of
collaborative arrangements, and risks related to relying on such
arrangements; the timing and receipt of payments from others; the
risk that Arena's revenues are based in part on estimates, judgment
and accounting policies, and incorrect estimates or disagreement
regarding estimates or accounting policies may result in changes to
Arena's guidance or previously reported results; the timing and
outcome of regulatory review is uncertain, and lorcaserin may not
receive any additional marketing approvals; regulatory decisions in
one territory may impact other regulatory decisions and Arena's
business prospects; reimbursement and pricing decisions; the
timing, success and cost of Arena's research and development;
results of clinical trials and other studies are subject to
different interpretations and may not be predictive of future
results; clinical trials and other studies may not proceed at the
time or in the manner expected or at all; unexpected or unfavorable
new data; nonclinical and clinical data is voluminous and detailed,
and regulatory agencies may interpret or weigh the importance of
data differently and reach different conclusions than Arena or
others, request additional information, have additional
recommendations or change their guidance or requirements before or
after approval; data and other information related to any of
Arena's research and development may not meet regulatory
requirements or otherwise be sufficient for (or Arena or a
collaborator may not pursue) further research and development,
regulatory review or approval or continued marketing; intellectual
property rights; and satisfactory resolution of litigation or other
disagreements. Additional factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those stated or implied by Arena's
forward-looking statements are disclosed in Arena's filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking
statements represent Arena's judgment as of the time of this
release. Arena disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements, other than as may be required under
applicable law.
Contact: Arena Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.
Craig M. Audet, Ph.D., Senior
Vice President,
Operations & Head of Global Regulatory Affairs
caudet@arenapharm.com
858.453.7200, ext.
1612
www.arenapharm.com
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SOURCE Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc.