EyePoint Pharmaceuticals Appoints Isabelle Lefebvre as Chief Regulatory Officer
EyePoint Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: EYPT) announced the appointment of Isabelle Lefebvre as Chief Regulatory Officer, succeeding John Weet. With over 30 years of experience in regulatory affairs, Lefebvre previously led regulatory strategy at Hengrui USA and has a strong background in ocular drug approvals from her time at Bausch Health. Her expertise is seen as critical in advancing EyePoint's pipeline, particularly EYP-1901, aimed at treating retinal diseases. The company also granted her stock options for entering employment, compliant with Nasdaq rules.
- Isabelle Lefebvre's extensive regulatory experience is expected to enhance the company's product approval processes.
- Her previous success in ocular drug approvals can potentially accelerate the advancement of EyePoint's retina-focused pipeline.
- The departure of John Weet may create a short-term disruption in regulatory continuity.
- Concerns may arise regarding the transition period and how effectively Lefebvre can manage ongoing regulatory challenges.
WATERTOWN, Mass., March 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: EYPT), a pharmaceutical company committed to developing and commercializing therapeutics to help improve the lives of patients with serious eye disorders, today announced the appointment of Isabelle Lefebvre as Chief Regulatory Officer. Ms. Lefebvre brings over 30 years of global regulatory affairs experience across all phases of drug development including ophthalmic and ocular conditions. Ms. Lefebvre is succeeding John Weet, Ph.D., who be leaving his role as Senior Vice President, Regulatory, following a transition period.
“Isabelle brings a wealth of regulatory strategy experience from large and midsize global pharmaceutical companies along with a strong track record of leading successful drug approvals in the ocular space, and we are delighted to welcome her to our executive leadership team,” said Nancy Lurker, Chief Executive Officer of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals. “In particular her ophthalmic and ocular expertise will be highly valuable as we progress our retina focused pipeline to bring our innovative products to patients in the United States and around the world. I also want to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Weet for his many years of service to EyePoint, and for his important impact and leadership in building our regulatory infrastructure and contributing to the many successes of our products and pipeline.”
Prior to joining EyePoint, Ms. Lefebvre was Vice-President, Head of Regulatory Science at Hengrui USA where she was responsible for overseeing U.S. and E.U. regulatory strategies for clinical programs in various phases of development. Previously, she spent 10 years at Bausch Health Companies Inc. where she held roles of increasing responsibility and led the successful approvals of two ocular drug products, LOTEMAX gel and VYZULTA®. Earlier in her career, Ms. Lefebvre held senior roles in regulatory strategy and affairs at Lundbeck Inc., Alpharma Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Societe D’Analyses Biopharmaceutiques Inc. Ms. Lefebvre holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Montreal and an M.S. in Regulatory Affairs from Northeastern University.
“I am thrilled to be joining EyePoint at this exciting time, as the company continues to make strides in advancing EYP-1901, its lead pipeline program which has the potential to change the treatment paradigm for patients with wet AMD and other retinal diseases,” said Ms. Lefebvre. “EyePoint is a leader in ocular drug delivery, and I look forward to working with the outstanding leadership team to execute on the company’s mission of improving the lives of patients with serious eye disorders.”
Inducement Grants under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)
In connection with the hiring of Ms. Lefebvre, the Compensation Committee of Eyepoint Pharmaceutical’s Board of Directors granted stock options to purchase an aggregate of 80,000 shares of common stock as an inducement award material to Ms. Lefebvre entering into employment with the company in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The stock options have an exercise price equal to the closing price of EyePoint's common stock on March 7, 2022, and will vest as follows:
About EyePoint Pharmaceuticals
EyePoint Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: EYPT) is a pharmaceutical company committed to developing and commercializing therapeutics to help improve the lives of patients with serious eye disorders. The company's pipeline leverages its proprietary Durasert® technology for sustained intraocular drug delivery including EYP-1901, a potential six-month intravitreal anti-VEGF treatment initially targeting wet age-related macular degeneration. Durasert’s proven intravitreal drug delivery platform has been safely administered to thousands of patients' eyes across four U.S. FDA approved products, including YUTIQ® for the treatment of chronic non-infectious uveitis affecting the posterior segment of the eye, which is currently marketed by the company. EyePoint Pharmaceuticals is headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts.
EYEPOINT PHARMACEUTICALS SAFE HARBOR STATEMENTS UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION ACT OF 1995: To the extent any statements made in this press release deal with information that is not historical, these are forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the use of proceeds for the offering and other statements identified by words such as “will,” “potential,” “could,” “can,” “believe,” “intends,” “continue,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “may,” other words of similar meaning or the use of future dates. Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Uncertainties and risks may cause EyePoint’s actual results to be materially different than those expressed in or implied by EyePoint’s forward-looking statements. For EyePoint, this includes uncertainties regarding the timing and clinical development of our product candidates, including EYP-1901; the potential for EYP-1901 as a novel six-month treatment for serious eye diseases, including wet age-related macular degeneration; the effectiveness and timeliness of clinical trials, and the usefulness of the data; the timeliness of regulatory approvals; the success of current and future license agreements; our dependence on contract research organizations, co-promotion partners, and other outside vendors and service providers; effects of competition and other developments affecting sales of our commercialized products, YUTIQ® and DEXYCU®; market acceptance of our products; product liability; industry consolidation; compliance with environmental laws; risks and costs of international business operations; volatility of stock price; possible dilution; absence of dividends; the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on EyePoint’s business, the medical community and the global economy, and the impact of general business and economic conditions. More detailed information on these and additional factors that could affect EyePoint’s actual results are described in EyePoint’s filings with the SEC, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, as revised or supplemented by its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed with the SEC. All forward-looking statements in this news release speak only as of the date of this news release. EyePoint undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
For EyePoint Pharmaceuticals:
Investors:
Christina Tartaglia
Stern IR
Direct: 212-698-8700
christina.tartaglia@sternir.com
Media Contact:
Amy Phillips
Green Room Communications
Direct: 412-327-9499
aphillips@greenroompr.com
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