Business & Tech
KaloBios Hires First CFO
The South San Francisco biotech company homes in on finances for clinical trials and looks ahead to a possible IPO.
KaloBios Pharmaceuticals of South San Francisco appointed its first chief financial officer, Jeffrey H. Cooper, this week. Cooper was previously senior vice president and chief financial officer of BioMarin Pharmaceutical of Novato.
Joan E. Kureczka, the company’s media spokesperson, said that KaloBios has not needed a CFO in the past.
“[President and CEO] Dave Pritchard has that capability in his personal background,” she said.
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Cooper has been hired in part because KaloBios is now considering possibilities for an IPO, and Cooper will help steer the company toward that option.
Kureczka said that the company is “certainly evaluating” going public, but the decision depends on current financing and how upcoming clinical trials proceed. KaloBios is currently working toward clinical trials of patient-targeted antibodies in three areas: asthma, Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, and blood cancers.
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The company hopes to achieve a $30 million financing this month, which will come from a combination of institutions and venture capital investment.
Ron Leuty of the San Francisco Business Times reported that: “Cooper and KaloBios have their work cut out for them: Biotech IPOs have been few and far between in the Bay Area over the past five years. Those that have hit the stock market often have come with a hefty haircut as investors have shied away from the industry's risk, but there are signs of an upswing. Cancer drug developer ChemoCentryx Inc. of Mountain View, for example, has seen its share price rise about 40 percent since it hit the market at $11 on Feb. 8.”
According to KaloBio's press release, during Cooper’s tenure as CFO at BioMarin, the company’s market capitalization increased more than sevenfold. Prior to BioMarin, he served as vice president of finance at Matrix Pharmaceuticals, and has held several finance-related positions within the health care and pharmaceutical industries, including corporate controller at Foundation Health Systems and director of business analysis at Syntex Corporation.
“KaloBios offers a unique opportunity as a biotechnology company with unique technology, a promising pipeline of clinical-stage product candidates, and an experienced management team,” said Cooper. “I look forward to working with them to help realize the full potential of KaloBios’ business strategy and prospects.”
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