BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. has made two new leadership appointments:
 

• Greg Friberg, M.D., as Executive Vice President, Chief Research & Development Officer, succeeding Hank Fuchs, M.D.
• James Sabry, M.D., Ph.D., as Executive Vice President, Chief Business Officer.

Dr. Greg Friberg, EVP, Chief Research & Development Officer

Friberg, who will join BioMarin effective Sept. 30, is a leader with nearly two decades of industry experience. He comes to BioMarin from Amgen, Inc., where he most recently served as Vice President, Global Medical Affairs, Rare Disease. During his 18 years at Amgen, he was responsible for advancing multiple medicines from investigational new drug application filing through late-stage development. In addition, he served as head of Global Development for the company’s hematology/oncology and bone portfolios.
 
At BioMarin, he will assume responsibility for the company’s R&D organization, including discovery research, preclinical, translational and clinical programs, as well as global regulatory and medical affairs.
 
Friberg holds an M.D. from New York Medical College. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and his fellowship in hematology and oncology at The University of Chicago Medical Center. Prior to Amgen, he served on the faculty of the University of Chicago.

Dr. James Sabry, EVP, Chief Business Officer

Sabry, whose appointment is effective Oct. 7, is one of the biopharmaceutical industry’s top business development executives, having led 1,200 transactions over his career. He joins BioMarin from Roche and Genentech, where he spent 14 years, serving most recently as Executive Vice President and Global Head of Roche Partnering.
 
He brings decades of expertise in identifying innovation at all stages of development, from preclinical to commercialized products, focusing on novel targets and approaches to managing serious medical conditions. During his tenure at Roche and Genentech, Sabry identified, executed and managed transactions that bolstered the pipelines of both organizations.
 
Earlier in his career, he was President and CEO of Arete Therapeutics, as well as Chairman of the Board of Directors, and served as CEO of Cytokinetics, a company he co-founded.
 
Sabry holds an M.D. from Queen’s University and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and he held faculty positions at UCSF and Harvard Medical School.
 
“We are pleased to welcome Greg and James to BioMarin. Greg is a world-class scientist and innovative thinker. He brings to the role deep experience in successfully advancing product candidates through the development process and to market. His proven record in drug development, outstanding leadership skills and expertise as a clinician make him the ideal person for this role,” said Alexander Hardy, President and CEO. “James is recognized as one of the industry’s most astute dealmakers. His scientific acumen and industry knowledge, built over decades as an entrepreneur and executive, are unparalleled. James will spend time getting to know the company and the role business development can play by identifying important and appropriately sized transactions that support our already strong outlook.”
 
BioMarin also announced that Brinda Balakrishnan, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Corporate Strategy and Business Development Officer, has decided to leave the company, effective Oct. 1. During her more than eight years at BioMarin, Balakrishnan led deals that added nearly 20 assets to the company’s portfolio and divested certain pipeline programs.
 
This news comes weeks after BioMarin named Cristin Hubbard as executive vice president and chief commercial officer.

More BioMarin News

Last year, the U.S. FDA approved BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.’s Roctavian (valoctocogene roxaparvovec-rvox) gene therapy for the treatment of adults with severe hemophilia A (congenital factor VIII (FVIII) deficiency with FVIII activity < 1 IU/dL) without antibodies to adeno-associated virus serotype 5 (AAV5) detected by an FDA-approved test.