Zenas BioPharma Announces New Executive Leadership Appointments

Hua Mu, MD, Ph.D. appointed President, CEO and Acting CMO

Joe Farmer appointed CBO

HONG KONG and BOSTON, May 03, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zenas BioPharma (“Zenas”), a cross-border (China-USA based) biopharmaceutical company committed to the development and delivery of immune-based therapies, today announced the appointment of Hua Mu, MD, Ph.D. as President and Chief Executive Officer and Acting Chief Medical Officer and Joe Farmer as Chief Business and Administrative Officer.

“We are delighted to have Hua join the Zenas executive leadership team,” said Lonnie Moulder, Founder and Executive Chairman. “His extensive experience, including building and leading R&D organizations in China, and his track record of successful development and approval of new drugs in the US and China will be critical as Zenas builds a global organization and advances its innovative pipeline of immune-based therapies.”

Dr. Mu joins Zenas after co-founding Overland Pharmaceuticals and serving as Interim Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Officer, while also serving as Venture Partner at Hillhouse Capital. Prior to Overland, Dr. Mu served as Chief Scientific Officer and President of R&D and later Chief Medical Officer of Simcere Pharmaceutical Group and President of Simcere of America Inc. Before Simcere, he was Senior Vice President and Global Head of Product Development Service and Partnership at WuXi AppTec. Prior to WuXi, he was Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at Hutchison MediPharma in China. He previously held clinical development executive roles at several global pharmaceutical companies in the US, including Biogen and Genentech.

Dr. Mu received his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley and completed his post-doctorate training at University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine and University of Washington School of Medicine. He received his MD degree from West China University of Medical Sciences.

“Zenas is an innovative biopharmaceutical company uniquely positioned at the nexus of drug development and product flow between China and the West, with an exceptional management team, a world class investor base, and an impressive pipeline of differentiated programs,” said Dr. Mu. "I am thrilled to work with the entire Zenas team and network of partners to achieve our mission to transform the lives of patients with unmet medical needs by bringing best-in-class immune-based therapies to the world.”

Zenas also announced the appointment of Joe Farmer as Chief Business and Administrative Officer. Mr. Farmer is an accomplished biopharma executive with approximately 25 years of transactional and operational experience working with emerging biotechnology companies at all stages of development, from discovery through commercialization. Prior to joining Zenas, Mr. Farmer served as Chief Operating Officer at Xilio Therapeutics.

Prior to Xilio, Mr. Farmer was the General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at TESARO, where he led the global legal, compliance and government affairs functions and was a key member of the leadership team through its acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline in 2019. He previously served as Chief Corporate Counsel at Cubist Pharmaceuticals through its acquisition by Merck in 2015 and served at other publicly traded companies as General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer. Mr. Farmer began his career as a corporate attorney at Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault. He received his J.D. from Boston College Law School.

“With the appointments of Hua and Joe, Zenas has further strengthened its executive leadership team,” said Lonnie Moulder. “Their respective expertise in building global organizations and executing corporate development strategy through all phases of drug development and commercialization will be invaluable as we continue to advance our global development programs and expand our novel pipeline.”

About Zenas BioPharma

Zenas BioPharma is a cross-border (China-USA based) biopharmaceutical company committed to becoming a global leader in the development and delivery of immune-based therapies for patients in China and around the world. Zenas is rapidly advancing a deep pipeline of innovative therapeutics that continues to grow through our successful business development strategy. Our experienced leadership team and network of business partners drive operational excellence to deliver potentially transformative therapies to improve the lives of those facing autoimmune and rare diseases. For more information about Zenas BioPharma, please visit www.zenasbio.com and follow us on Twitter at @ZenasBioPharma and LinkedIn.

Contacts

Investor Contact:

Zenas BioPharma
IR@zenasbio.com

Media Contact:

Lauren Bartlett
Zenas BioPharma
lauren.bartlett@zenasbio.com

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