Directorate Change

RNS Number : 8623O

Open Orphan PLC

13 October 2021

 

13 October 2021

Open Orphan plc
("Open Orphan" or the "Company")

Directorate Change

Open Orphan plc   (AIM: ORPH), a rapidly growing specialist contract research organisation (CRO) and world leader in vaccine and antiviral testing using human challenge clinical trials , announces the appointment of Yamin 'Mo' Khan as an Independent Non-Executive Director to the Board of Open Orphan with immediate effect. Mo will also Chair both the Audit and Risk and Nomination Committees.

Mo is a business leader and customer-focused CRO executive with over 25 years of global clinical research experience across clinical operations, project management, business development and executive management functions. He previously worked at Pharm-Olam International, a global CRO, from 2000-2019 across a variety of senior positions including Executive Vice President of Clinical Development and Global Director of Clinical Operations. Mo was a key leader in driving the expansion and growth of the company from a small niche European CRO to a global player with offices across all continents. Laterally, he led global business development at Pharm-Olam resulting in significant growth and a successful sale in 2017, delivering substantial returns to its shareholders. Prior to this he worked at Innovex and Quintiles CRO (IQVIA).

As part of Mo joining the Board, Michael Meade is stepping down from the Board with immediate effect. Michael joined the Board of Open Orphan as part of the acquisition of hVIVO and helped to steer the Company to the stronger and more successful position that it occupies today.

The disclosures required by Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules for Companies and Rule 5.22 (b) of Chapter 5: Additional Rules for the Euronext Growth Market operated by Euronext Dublin in respect of Mo are set out in the Appendix to this announcement.

Cathal Friel, Executive Chairman, Open Orphan, said: "We are delighted to announce the appointment of Mo Khan to the Board of Open Orphan. Mo has extensive CRO knowledge and experience in a fast growth business and will be an invaluable addition to the Company as we capitalise on our position as a leading European CRO and world leader in testing vaccines and therapeutics for infectious and respiratory diseases, as this market exponentially grows to an expected $250bn by 2025.

We would also like to thank Michael Meade for all of his help and assistance in the 22 months since we acquired hVIVO, Michael's knowledge of the City and his financial acumen has been invaluable to us."

Mo Khan, Incoming Non-Executive Director, Open Orphan, said: "I am delighted to join the Board of Open Orphan. I have been very impressed by the outstanding progress that Cathal Friel, the Board and the team have made in such a short period of time. These are exciting times for Open Orphan and its subsidiaries in the light of their current full-service, high quality offerings in conjunction with the increased interest in challenge studies. I look forward to working with them in the next stage of the evolution of Open Orphan."

For further information please contact:

Open Orphan plc	[phone]
Cathal Friel, Executive Chairman
Arden Partners plc (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)	[phone]
John Llewellyn-Lloyd / Louisa Waddell / Oscair McGrath
finnCap plc (Joint Broker)	[phone]
Geoff Nash / James Thompson/ Richard Chambers
Davy (Euronext Growth Adviser and Joint Broker)	[phone]
Anthony Farrell
Walbrook PR (Financial PR & IR)	[phone] or  [e-mail]
Paul McManus / Sam Allen / Louis Ashe-Jepson	[phone] / [phone] / [phone]

Appendix

Full name: Yamin Mohammed Khan

Age: 52

Current directorships / partnerships	Previous directorships / partnerships (in the last five years)
None	Pharm-Olam International (UK) Limited

Mo Khan does not hold any shares or options over shares in the Company.

There is no further information to be disclosed in relation to Mo 's appointment pursuant to AIM Rule 17, paragraph (g) of Schedule Two of the AIM Rules for Companies or and Rule 5.22 (b) of Chapter 5: Additional Rules for the Euronext Growth Market operated by Euronext Dublin.

Notes to Editors

About Open Orphan

Open Orphan plc (London and Euronext: ORPH) is a rapidly growing pharmaceutical service/contract research company that is a world leader in testing vaccines and antivirals using human challenge clinical trials. The Company provides services to Big Pharma, biotech and government/public health organisations.

Open Orphan runs challenge studies in London from both its 19-bedroom Whitechapel quarantine clinic and its state-of-the-art 24-bedroom QMB clinic with its highly specialised on-site virology and immunology laboratory. Open Orphan has a leading portfolio of human challenge study models for infectious and respiratory diseases and is developing a number of other models. There has been an explosion in the growth of the infectious disease pharmaceuticals market, which is estimated to grow to in excess of $250bn by 2025. The Group is focused on refreshing its existing challenge models and develop new models, such as Malaria, to address the dramatic growth potential of the global infectious disease market.

Building upon its many years of challenge studies and virology research, the Company is developing an in-depth database of infectious disease progression data. Based on the Company's Disease in Motion® platform, this unique dataset includes clinical, immunological, virological and digital (wearable) biomarkers. The Disease in Motion platform has many potential applications across a wide variety of end users including big technology, wearables, pharma and biotech companies.

Open Orphan's Paris office has been providing biometry, data management and statistics to its many European pharmaceutical clients for over 20 years. For over 15 years, the Company's Netherlands office has been providing drug development consultancy and services, including CMC (chemistry, manufacturing and controls), PK and medical writing, to a broad range of European clients. Both offices are now also fully integrated with the London office and working on challenge study contracts as well as supporting third party trial contracts.

 

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