Appointments

Sosei Group Corporation has announced the appointment of Toshihiro Maeda as chief operating officer (COO).

Previously Toshihiro has worked at Bristol Myers Squibb, leading a business unit, having been instrumental in the post-merger integration of Celgene’s businesses and commercial strategies for the combined group based in Japan.

Toshihiro has a wealth of global management and commercialisation experience as well as a strong pharmaceutical background. He has previously worked at Merck both in the US and Japan, holding senior partnering and commercialisation roles in its oncology and diabetes business units.

In his new role at Sosei Heptares, Toshihiro will be expected to lead the post-acquisition integration of Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Japan (IPJ) and global technical operations, such as manufacturing, supply chain and quality assurance.

Chris Cargill, CEO and president of Sosei Heptares, stated: “I’m delighted to welcome Toshihiro to the team here at Sosei Heptares. His extensive experience in global pharma will be invaluable to us as we continue the integration of IPJ and its APAC business. This key appointment signifies our dedication to growing our Japan pharma business, to allow us to develop and deliver more medicines to patients in need in this large and rapidly growing market.”

Commenting on his appointment, Toshihiro Maeda said: “Sosei Heptares has positioned itself to be an emerging leader in the Japanese biopharma sector with a large and diverse pipeline of wholly owned and partnered drug candidates at all stages of development, targeting diseases with significant medical need. I am truly excited to be joining the Company at such an important time, not just as we continue to build on this strong foundation to drive growth and new opportunities for the business in Japan and globally, but also to highlight the global competitiveness and attractions of the Japanese biopharma industry.”