Dr Richard Butt appointed CEO of Apollo Therapeutics

Apollo Therapeutics, the investment fund focused on driving therapeutic innovation through university collaboration, has appointed Dr Richard Butt as CEO, effective from 23 May 2016.

Dr Butt joins Apollo from Pfizer where he spent 20 years working in research and development. Most recently he was Senior Director and Research Project Leader, Clinical Research at Pfizer Neusentis within the Neuroscience and Pain Research Unit.  At Pfizer Neusentis he was a member of the senior management team, responsible for defining research unit strategy, delivery of project and portfolio goals and organisational effectiveness.

Dr Butt brings valuable experience in drug discovery and development.  In his time at Pfizer he has held leadership positions in discovery biology, drug safety and clinical line functions and has led multiple teams to deliver key milestones from preclinical target validation to the readout of Phase IIa clinical efficacy studies.  These programmes have spanned multiple target classes, disease therapy areas and drug modalities, and many have been delivered through collaborations with biotech and academic partners.  Dr Butt has a particular interest in translational research and recently led Pfizer Neusentis’ translational medicine strategy through a series of collaborative clinical studies.

Dr Ian Tomlinson, Chairman of the Apollo Therapeutics Investment Committee commented on Dr Butt’s appointment: “Richard brings twenty years of industry experience, particularly in early stage drug development and translational medicine.  His proven track-record of delivery, combined with his knowledge of the qualities that industry value in a project will be invaluable for our future investments.

“Hiring a senior industry executive of Richard’s calibre and experience is a great endorsement of Apollo Therapeutics’ model and potential. We look forward to welcoming him to the team.”

Apollo Therapeutics launched earlier this year

Apollo Therapeutics is a £40 million fund launched in January 2016. It will drive forward therapeutic innovation with the goal of significantly improving the speed and potential of university research being translated into novel medicines.

It is a unique collaboration between AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, and the technology transfer offices of Imperial College London, University College London and the University of Cambridge, and is the first time that global pharmaceutical companies and world-leading universities have come together to create this type of fund.