The Noxopharm Ltd (ASX: NOX) share price has leapt 6% this morning after announcing a change in executive leadership.
The move coincides with the drug development company's goal to position itself on the global stage.
At the time of writing, the Noxopharm share price is 6.1% higher, at 43.5 cents apiece.
New blood to take the reins
This morning, Noxopharm announced its new year's resolution would be to make 2022 the year of "generational change". It's appointed its current chief medical officer Dr Gisela Mautner as its new CEO.
Dr Mautner will take over from current CEO Dr Graham Kelly from 1 February.
Comment from current CEO
Dr Kelly said Dr Mautner's experience in the industry would equip the company with the ability to position itself for "a valuable partnering opportunity".
Dr Kelly said:
The company is in the process of transiting from an early-stage biotech company into a serious bio-pharma company looking to make its mark on the world stage.
Having worked alongside Gisela for several years now, I have full confidence in her ability to achieve that objective. I believe she will make an outstanding CEO.
Dr Kelly will transition from an executive to a consultant role. In doing so, he will remain involved in the company's future — remaining its largest shareholder, board member, and inventor of much of the company's Intellectual Property.
Noxopharm is an Australian based biopharmaceutical company with the primary focus of treating cancer and septic shock.
The company is developing its lead drug candidate Veyonda, currently in the second phase of its clinical trials.
Noxopharm share price snapshot
In 2021, the Noxopharm share price dropped by around 20%. It saw its sharpest drop in mid-December, just a few days after enrolling the first group of patients for the first clinical trial of Veyonda as an experimental cancer treatment.
The drop marked the share price's 52-week low.
As of today, the company has a market capitalisation of more than $125 billion with around 292 million shares issued.
