Santhera Announces Catherine Isted as New CFO
Santhera Pharmaceuticals (SIX: SANN) has announced the appointment of Catherine Isted as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective February 24, 2025. Catherine will succeed Andrew Smith, who has served as CFO for five years and played a key role in securing the financial foundation for Santhera’s ongoing development. After successfully guiding the company through a period of transformation and financial stability, Andrew has decided to step down but will continue to support the transition over the coming months.
Leadership to Support Growth
Catherine Isted brings more than 25 years of leadership experience in life sciences finance, corporate development, and investment banking, positioning her well to support Santhera’s continued growth and expansion. Most recently, Catherine served as CFO at BenevolentAI, an AI-driven drug discovery company listed on Euronext Amsterdam. There, she was responsible for overseeing financial operations, investor relations, and corporate strategy. Prior to BenevolentAI, Catherine was CEO and CFO at ReNeuron Group plc, a UK-based biotech company focused on stem cell-derived exosome technologies. In this role, she guided the company through its growth phase, successfully managing both corporate strategy and investor relations.
Additionally, Catherine has held the role of Head of Corporate Development and Investor Relations at Oxford Biomedica plc, a leading gene and cell therapy company. At Oxford Biomedica, she contributed to the company’s strategic growth, leading significant transactions and expanding its international shareholder base. Catherine’s early career includes over 15 years in healthcare investment banking, with senior roles at Morgan Stanley, ABN AMRO, Nomura, and Peel Hunt, advising life sciences companies on IPOs, financings, and investor strategies. She began her career as a bench scientist at Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) before transitioning into finance. Catherine holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Leicester and is a Chartered Management Accountant (ACMA).
Her extensive experience in public markets, corporate development, and financial strategy, combined with her deep understanding of the biopharmaceutical sector, will be crucial as Santhera continues to advance its commercial strategy and evaluate additional late-stage pipeline assets in rare and orphan diseases.
A Smooth Transition with a Strong Financial Foundation
Andrew Smith, who has been with Santhera since early 2020, is credited with playing a pivotal role in securing the company’s financial foundation and ensuring the company’s transformation into a commercial-stage entity. Under his leadership, Santhera successfully navigated significant milestones, including the licensing of vamorolone, debt restructuring, and multiple funding rounds. These efforts have provided Santhera with the capital necessary to continue its operations and reach its projected cash breakeven point in mid-2026. Andrew also helped implement legal frameworks and operational processes to build the company’s commercial infrastructure.
Andrew will continue to support the transition, ensuring a smooth handover to Catherine and facilitating the continuity of Santhera’s operations. Dario Eklund, CEO of Santhera Pharmaceuticals, praised Andrew’s contributions, stating, “Andrew has been an exceptional financial leader, helping to secure our financial future and enabling the Company’s strong commercial trajectory. After five successful years with Santhera, we greatly appreciate his commitment to ensuring a seamless transition.”
Dario also expressed enthusiasm about the appointment of Catherine Isted, saying, “We are equally thrilled to welcome Catherine Isted as our new CFO. Her strong finance and corporate development experience within the sector supports our efforts in evaluating additional late-stage pipeline assets in rare and orphan diseases through distribution agreements or licensing partnerships.”
About Santhera
Santhera Pharmaceuticals (SIX: SANN) is a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative medicines for rare neuromuscular diseases with high unmet medical need. The company holds an exclusive license from ReveraGen for AGAMREE® (vamorolone), a dissociative steroid with a novel mode of action. Vamorolone has been studied as an alternative to standard corticosteroids for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). AGAMREE is approved for DMD treatment in the U.S., EU, UK, China, and Hong Kong. Santhera has licensed the rights to AGAMREE for North America to Catalyst Pharmaceuticals and for China and certain Southeast Asian countries to Sperogenix Therapeutics.
