ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 22, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:NABI) today announced that the company's Board of Directors has named Raafat E.F. Fahim, Ph.D. as President and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Fahim, who also joins the Board as a director, succeeds Leslie Hudson, Ph.D., who had served as Interim President and Chief Executive Officer since February 2007. Dr. Hudson will remain on the Board of Directors.
"The Board of Directors decision to tap Dr. Fahim was unanimous and we are extremely pleased to have someone with Raafat's proven leadership qualities and track record of success, particularly in the vaccines field, to lead Nabi," said Geoffrey Cox, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board. "Raafat's extensive industry experience and his knowledge and understanding of Nabi Biopharmaceuticals make him the ideal candidate for this critical role."
Nabi Biopharmaceuticals has recently accomplished several key milestones that provide a strong base for future value:
-- Obtaining positive final data from the NicVAX Phase 2b proof-of-
concept clinical trial in smoking cessation
-- Selling the Biologics strategic business unit for $185 mm to
Biotest Pharmaceuticals Corporation
-- Improving the financial position of the Company
-- Completing a strategic reorganization of the company resulting
in streamlined corporate structure and workforce
-- Initiating a $65 million common stock repurchase program.
"I am extremely excited to lead Nabi as President and CEO at this pivotal time," said Dr. Raafat Fahim. "We have strategically focused the company on its vaccine pipeline and I am committed to working with the Board and our talented management and development team to fully realize the value of our considerable pipeline assets and to maximize shareholder value. Nabi's NicVAX and StaphVAX vaccine programs have great potential to satisfy critical unmet medical need and unlocking this value for our shareholders is my primary focus."
Dr. Fahim joined the Company in March 2003 as Vice President of Vaccine Manufacturing Operations and was named Senior Vice President, Research, Technical and Manufacturing Operations later that year. His most recent role was Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of the Biologics Strategic Business Unit. Prior to joining Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, Dr. Fahim spent the majority of his career with Sanofi-Pasteur (previously Aventis Pasteur) where he was instrumental in developing several vaccines from early research to approval and commercialization. During his tenure he held positions of increasing importance in R & D, late development and operations at Sanofi-Pasteur and spent the last 8 years of his tenure as Vice President, Industrial Operations. Dr. Fahim received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Toronto.
About Nabi Biopharmaceuticals
Nabi Biopharmaceuticals leverages its experience and knowledge in powering the immune system to develop products that target serious medical conditions in the areas of gram-positive bacterial infections and nicotine addiction. Nabi Biopharmaceuticals is currently developing NicVAX(r) (Nicotine Conjugate Vaccine), an innovative and proprietary investigational vaccine for treatment of nicotine addiction and prevention of smoking relapse, and StaphVAX(r) (Staphylococcus aureus Vaccine), a vaccine designed to prevent the most dangerous and prevalent strains of S. aureus bacterial infections. The company is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland. For additional information about Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, please visit our Web site:http://www.nabi.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this release that are not strictly historical are forward-looking statements including statements about the potential of our products in development. You can identify these forward-looking statements because they involve our expectations, beliefs, projections, anticipations or other characterizations of future events or circumstances. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of any number of factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, risks relating to our ability to: successfully pursue strategic and other alternatives; obtain successful clinical trial results; receive PhosLo milestone and royalty proceeds; successfully partner with third parties to fund, develop, and manufacture our pipeline products, including NicVAX and our gram-positive infections products; realize anticipated cost saving; attract and maintain the human and financial resources to bring to market products in development; depend upon third parties to manufacture our products; achieve approval and market acceptance of our products; enter into and maintain arrangements with third parties to market and sell our products; comply with reporting and payment obligations under government rebate and pricing programs; raise additional capital on acceptable terms, or at all; and re-pay our outstanding convertible senior notes when due. Many of these factors are more fully discussed, as are other factors, in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2006 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 29, 2007 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.