Icahn takes control of ImClone as CEO departs

The battle for control of ImClone [1] is over. Billionaire investor Carl Icahn took the helm today as embattled CEO Joseph Fischer bowed out. Icahn was named chairman and a close associate was picked to find a new CEO for the world's most notorious biotech company. Also, the final three board members who stood in Icahn's way said they would not stand for reelection, leaving the field wide open for the investor to wield his influence.

Icahn has been a loud and frequent critic of ImClone, saying that its executives had no real clue what they were doing. His first step, he says, will be to examine the relationship of ImClone with Bristol-Myers Squibb, which markets Erbitux. Erbitux now faces competition from a similar therapy developed by Amgen. Icahn also says he will be focused on fixing everything that has gone wrong at ImClone over the last three years. That's no small task.

- here's the MarketWatch report [2] on Icahn

Related Articles:
ImClone Chairman Kies out as Icahn gains [3]
ImClone Systems drop bid to find a buyer [4]