SUZHOU, China and NEW YORK, May 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — CMAB Biopharma Limited. (CMAB), a strict “pure-play” contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) focusing solely on services from sequence to commercial manufacturing for biologic products, has today announced the appointment of Dr. Wang Yongzhong as its CEO. He has assumed responsibilities on May 15, and will set the overall enterprise vision, lead strategic direction and oversee the operations. Dr. Wang will join the Board of Directors of CMAB.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to welcome Dr. Wang, a highly respected executive in the field. With his deep expertise of both the industry and markets in which CMAB operates, we believe he is going to take CMAB to the next level,” said Ms. Mengjiao Jiang, Chairperson of CMAB. “His experience in driving the innovations at Kanghong Biotech and achieving operation excellence at Simcere Pharmaceutical Group, his passion for servicing customers at a global scale, and his authentic team player attitude make him an extraordinary fit for CMAB.” Ms. Jiang added, “We are confident he is the right person to lead CMAB to the next stage of growth.”
Dr. Wang will bring over 20 years of innovation and leadership experience in global pharmaceutical and biotech industries. He most recently held a role of President of Pharmaceuticals and EVP at Simcere, where he oversaw all pilot and commercial manufacturing operations including a Mab facility and a recombinant protein facility. He was also responsible for all quality operations including R&D, production and distribution, supply chain, engineering, regulatory affairs, and international sales. Among other duties, he also served as the Chairman of the Board for a joint venture for therapeutic DNA vaccines and on the joint steering committee for Simcere’s strategic partnership in biosimilars with AMGEN.
Prior to Simcere, he served as the CEO at Kanghong Biotech, which successfully developed and launched Conbercept, the first innovative biological product with an international non-propriety name from China in 2014. Under his leadership, Conbercept became the market leader over international brands in China market in 2016. Dr. Wang further brought Conbercept to the global stage by clearing a FDA IND to directly enter phase III clinical trial in the USA, the first such case for innovative biological product from China. This achievement was voted as one of China’s Top Ten Advancements in Pharmaceutical and Biotech Industries in 2016.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Wang worked at Genzyme in Cambridge, USA. He led CMC and quality projects for Carticel and Epicel, the first two approved cell therapy products by the FDA. He was also instrumental for the development and approval of MACI, the first tissue-engineering product approved by FDA. He held two patents for MACI, both of which were used for commercial manufacturing.
Dr. Wang earned his PhD from the Chemical and Biological Engineering Department at Tufts University in Boston and his scientific publications have obtained over 3,000 citations by peers in the biotech field.
“I’m excited to join the CMAB team,” said Dr. Wang. “CMAB has that rare combination of a customer-oriented philosophy base, leading technology, amazingly talented people, dedication to technology innovations, and momentum in the market. I am honored to join the leadership team and this group of great people that have fueled CMAB’s disruption of the CDMO services. As we add capabilities for our clients, deepen our enterprise presence, and expand into the market, our mission remains unchanged – to make our customers successful in the shortest time possible”
