Verona Pharma, a drug development company focused on first-in-class medicines to treat respiratory diseases, has appointed Vikas Sinha to the Board of Verona Pharma as a Non-Executive Director, with immediate effect.
Vikas (aged 53) has over 20 years of experience working in senior finance roles in the life sciences industry. He is currently Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALXN), one of the world’s leading rare disease companies with a market cap of approximately USD30 billion. Vikas joined Alexion in 2005 and is responsible for global financial management, information technology, corporate and strategic development, treasury, internal audit and investor relations.
Prior to Alexion, Vikas spent 11 years at Bayer AG where he held various positions within the company in the United States, Canada, Japan and Germany. His last role was Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corporation, USA, where he was responsible for financial management and strategic planning in North America.
Prior to his time at Bayer AG, Vikas worked at ANZ Bank as a Senior Manager in Corporate Banking and at Citibank as an analyst.
Vikas is a chartered accountant by training. He is a certified public accountant in the USA, and an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Vikas also has a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Asian Institute of Management in the Philippines.
Dr. David Ebsworth, Chairman of Verona Pharma, said: “Vikas’ impressive financial background, including his US expertise, makes him a very welcome addition to our Board of Directors. I have known Vikas for many years having worked together at Bayer and hold his impressive track record in high regard. We are pleased that Vikas will be joining our Board at such a pivotal time, as we progress our lead asset, RPL554, into a Phase 2b clinical trial programme.”