54gene co-founder and main enforcement serviceman Dr. Abasi Ene-Obong has stepped down from his enforcement role, the African genomics institution confirmed to TechCrunch today.
The three-year-old institution has appointed General Counsel Teresia L. Bost arsenic interim CEO. She volition beryllium supported by Chief Operating Officer Delali Attipoe, the institution said. Ene-Obong, connected the different hand, volition clasp his presumption connected 54gene’s committee portion moving to a caller relation of elder advisor.
Ene-Obong’s resignation and Bost’s ascension comes 2 months aft 54gene laid disconnected 95 employees, oregon much than 30% of its workforce, successful August. The layoffs affected employees, mostly declaration unit (in labs and income departments) recruited to enactment successful 54gene’s COVID concern enactment launched successful 2020 to complement its flagship product: a biobank of the African genome.
Founded successful 2019 by Ene-Obong, 54gene addresses the spread successful the planetary genomics marketplace wherever Africans marque up little than 3% of familial worldly utilized successful pharmaceutical probe contempt being much genetically divers than immoderate different population. The audacious task has received implicit $40 cardinal from investors specified arsenic Adjuvant Capital, Y Combinator and Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund (CAIF) and partnered with organizations similar Illumina, Genentech and Parexel.
Biotechs globally thin to person a semipermanent attack toward making money; successful fact, specified companies tin inactive beryllium worthy billions with small to nary revenue. For the Washington-based but Africa-focused 54gene, its superior gross way involves moving with pharmaceutical companies to co-develop drugs and medicine–and that takes time. A emblematic clip framework for a caller cause from instauration to marketplace introduction tin instrumentality up to a decade, truthful it made consciousness for 54gene to crook its laboratory capabilities to COVID investigating arsenic a caller root of revenue.
However, the diminution successful COVID investigating has presented 54gene with caller challenges: dwindling revenues and redundant roles. Though it has already fto spell of 95 employees, the institution confirmed that it volition behaviour a 2nd circular of layoffs pursuing restructuring crossed respective departments. According to the YC-backed company, it wants to absorption resources connected its halfway ngo of African genomics probe and equalizing precision medicine. At the aforesaid time, its objective diagnostic limb takes the backmost seat.
Here’s much accusation connected the company’s caller direction:
Going forward, the superior absorption volition beryllium connected the unsocial genomic probe the institution has started by further leveraging its genomic datasets derived from 54gene’s state-of-the-art biobank, that presently houses implicit 130,000 unsocial diligent samples and corresponding genomic data, each with the nonsubjective of positioning the institution to marque contributions to precision medicine and cause discovery. This continues the meaningful enactment the institution has invested in, whilst de-emphasizing the objective diagnostic concern enactment astatine the time.
It’s unclear precisely wherefore Ene-Obong is stepping down. Yet, it’s not farfetched to presume that the company’s caller struggles are a contributing factor. Also, erstwhile the institution carried retired its archetypal circular of layoffs, allegations of fiscal impropriety were leveled against him and his executives from a radical of employees. But specified claims are unfounded, astatine slightest for now. Interestingly, the erstwhile CEO’s resignation besides comes 1 period aft Ogochukwu Francis Osifo, the company’s co-founder and VP, Engineering, near the institution successful September.
In effect to whether the company’s determination to fto him spell was performance-related oregon due to the fact that the ex-CEO was moving connected to caller projects, 54gene lone said, “Abasi has decided to measurement down arsenic the CEO but volition proceed to enactment the institution successful its go-forward plans specified arsenic strategical partnerships and fundraising. We cannot remark connected what different caller interests helium volition prosecute if any, but we privation him good and inactive see him a cardinal squad member.”.
As 54gene shifts into a caller phase, Ene-Obong, who consulted for organizations specified arsenic Gilead and IMS Health successful the past, believes the startup is successful the champion hands arsenic Bost and Attipoe “have heavy penetration into the workings of 54gene.” Bost boasts much than 20 years of extended cognition and acquisition crossed pharmaceutical, biotechnology and healthcare industries with companies specified arsenic Celgene and Quartet Health portion providing strategical enactment of securities matters, firm governance and concern matters. Attipoe, connected the different hand, brings much than 15 years of acquisition successful the pharmaceutical assemblage moving with firms similar Roche and Genentech.
Ene-Obong, addressing his exit and the modulation successful a statement, said:
I person ever believed that the standard of familial diverseness successful Africa and different highly divers populations volition materially interaction our knowing of biology and pb to amended medicines and interventions for the planetary population, and I americium arrogant of what has been achieved astatine 54gene. I’d similar to convey the 54gene Board for their enactment implicit the years, and the galore talented scientists and exertion professionals I person had the pleasance to enactment with during my clip astatine the company. I volition proceed to enactment the institution and the technological ecosystem, peculiarly the African genomics ecosystem. Teresia and Delali bring decades of acquisition successful gathering and scaling high-impact planetary pharma companies, and they besides person heavy penetration into the workings of 54gene. I americium excited to spot them instrumentality the institution to its adjacent phase.
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