ST GALLEN, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Regulatory News:

Vifor Pharma today announced the appointment of Gregory Oakes as EVP, President North America and member of the Vifor Pharma Executive Committee as of September 1, 2020.

Gregory Oakes has a proven track record of building and leading organizations across multiple therapeutic areas and geographies and has extensive launch and US Market Access experience. He joins from Amgen where he served as Corporate Vice President, Global Integration Lead for Otezla. In this role, he led the integration and commercialization of the $2B brand and successfully positioned it for sustained growth.

Prior to Amgen, Greg was Corporate Vice President and US General Manager at Celgene and previously held several executive positions at Novartis in the US. He began his career at Schering-Plough (Merck) where he worked in executive roles both in the US and Europe.

He received a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Clemson University and a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Marketing and Business Administration from Edinboro University, both in the US.

Gregory Oakes succeeds Patrick Treanor who joined Relypsa in 2015 to establish the sales organisation for the US launch of Veltassa®. For the past two years as President US, Patrick was instrumental in leading the commercialisation strategy of Veltassa® and aiding Vifor in the integration of Relypsa towards our goal of becoming the leader in nephrology and cardio-renal therapies. Patrick has decided for personal reasons to pursue opportunities outside of Vifor Pharma.

Stefan Schulze, CEO of Vifor Pharma Group comments; “We are delighted that Gregory will join Vifor Pharma as President North America. He has a proven track record of overseeing highly successful acquisitions, growing product portfolios across multiple therapeutic areas and brings a wealth of commercialisation experience. We look forward to working with him to successfully drive and execute our ambitious growth plans in the US.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Patrick for his dedicated leadership and outstanding contributions to our success over the past 5 years. Patrick played a pivotal role in the success and integration of Relypsa and we wish him the very best for his future endeavours, both professionally and personally.”

Vifor Pharma Group is a global pharmaceuticals company headquartered in Switzerland. It aims to become the global leader in iron deficiency, nephrology and cardio-renal therapies. The company is the partner of choice for pharmaceuticals and innovative patient-focused solutions. Vifor Pharma Group strives to help patients around the world with severe and chronic diseases lead better, healthier lives. The company develops, manufactures and markets pharmaceutical products for precision patient care. Vifor Pharma Group holds a leading position in all its core business activities and consists of the following companies: Vifor Pharma; Vifor Fresenius Medical Care Renal Pharma (a joint company with Fresenius Medical Care); Relypsa; and OM Pharma. Vifor Pharma Group is listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX Swiss Exchange, VIFN, ISIN: CH0364749348).