NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ovid Therapeutics Inc. (Ovid), a privately held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for rare and orphan diseases of the brain, announced today the appointment of Anna Kazanchyan, M.D., to the newly created position of Senior Vice President, Business Development. Dr. Kazanchyan will head corporate and business development activities at Ovid, where she will plan, seek, and execute transactions and establish and manage external alliances with industry and academia. She will report to Dr. Jeremy Levin, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Ovid. Dr. Kazanchyan previously served as Senior Vice President, Product Development at Ovid, having joined the Company in November 2014.
"Against this backdrop, her expertise and experience in scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial strategy will now focus on business development as we embark on the next phase of Ovid's development to expand our pipeline and form strategic alliances."
"Anna has played an important role in the evolution of our company and understands all aspects of our pipeline and strategy," said Dr. Levin. "Against this backdrop, her expertise and experience in scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial strategy will now focus on business development as we embark on the next phase of Ovid's development to expand our pipeline and form strategic alliances."
"I am very honored to be a part of Ovid and am proud of what we have accomplished to date. This new role signals the beginning of an even more exciting chapter for the company," said Dr. Kazanchyan. "Our goals are to build and broaden our pipeline of innovative products to help patients with rare and orphan neurological diseases. This in turn will help us advance toward Ovid's long-term goal to grow into a world-class, patient-focused, and science-driven neurology company."
Prior to joining Ovid, Dr. Kazanchyan was the Founder and Managing Partner of Primary i-Research, LLC. In this role, she provided strategic advice, support, and due diligence to leading global biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical companies, focused on the scientific, clinical, regulatory, and commercial outlook for their products. In addition, Dr. Kazanchyan has been a strategic advisor to CEOs of biopharmaceutical companies on matters related to business development, regulatory strategy, marketing, and commercial/competitive landscape, as well as equity and debt financing. She has evaluated and provided deep diligence on over 100 therapeutic products in dozens of indications, both for biopharmaceutical companies, as well as leading healthcare investment funds. In addition, Dr. Kazanchyan worked with Dr. Levin at both Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd (NYSE:TEVA). She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Foamix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (NASDAQ:FOMX).
Previously, Dr. Kazanchyan was Senior Biotechnology Analyst at Wachovia Securities, and was a member of the #1 and #2 Institutional-Investor ranked Biotechnology Equity Research teams at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, respectively.
Dr. Kazanchyan received an M.D. from Harvard Medical School and graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Biology from Clark University.
About Ovid Therapeutics Inc.
Ovid Therapeutics Inc. is a privately held, New York-based, biopharmaceutical company committed to transforming the lives of patients with rare and orphan diseases of the brain. Ovid focuses on patients and their unmet medical needs. Using the significant operational, product development, and business development experience of its management team, Ovid aims to become a leading neurology company, with multiple products and a rich pipeline, coupled with compelling research and development. Ovid recently completed a substantially oversubscribed $75 Million Series B financing led by Fidelity Management and Research Company and including Cowen Private Investments, Sanofi-Genzyme BioVentures, Tekla Capital Management, Sphera Global Healthcare Fund, Jennison Associates (on behalf of certain clients), Redmile Group, and Cormorant Asset Management, as well as additional blue chip mutual funds and leading life sciences investors.
For more information on Ovid, please visit http://www.ovidrx.com.
Contacts
Burns McClellan, on behalf of Ovid Therapeutics
Justin Jackson, 212-213-0006, ext. 327
[email protected]