Chinese contract R&D and manufacturing giant WuXi AppTec promoted Edward Hu from chief financial officer to co-CEO. He will continue to report to Ge Li, chairman and chief executive.
Hu, who joined the company in 2007, will continue to oversee corporate finance, investment and M&A until a new CFO is named. In his new role, Hu will share business management responsibilities with Dr. Li, including small-molecule drug discovery, development, manufacturing services, and drug and medical device testing.
“Ed’s extraordinary business leadership has been, and will continue to be, critical to the growth of WuXi AppTec,” Li said in a statement. “I look forward to working closely with Ed as we enter an exciting new era of growth.”
While at WuXi, Hu has served as chief operating officer, CFO and chief investment officer. He joined the company’s board of directors in March 2016.
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In May, WuXi AppTec launched its IPO on the Shanghai exchange. Within weeks, the company’s stock price rose sixfold, representing an increase by the daily maximum of 10% allowed by the exchange over 15 straight trading sessions. That sent WuXi AppTec’s market cap to $21.09 billion by May 29, compared to IQVIA’s $20.41 billion and the $18.26 billion of Covance’s parent company, LabCorp.
WuXi AppTec delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in 2015 as part of a deal to take the company private. At that time, the company was valued at $3.3 billion.