Joseph M. Hogan, Chairman of avateramedical N.V., commented: “We officially welcome Ian Read to our Supervisory Board. Ian, who is a member of the Advisory Board of Tennor Holding N.V., represents our main shareholder and is a great addition to our Board following his extraordinary career, over four decades, in the global healthcare industry and principally with Pfizer, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies. Ian stands for good governance, growth and value creation and the ability to transform companies to become strong and successful market leaders.”
As former president, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of Pfizer Mr Read created more than $240 billion of shareholder value. Mr Read was appointed Pfizer’s CEO in 2010, and a year later, became Chairman of the board. He retired as CEO in December 2018 and as board Chairman at the end of 2019. He is presently Chairman of DXC, a board member of Kimberly-Clark Corporation and he serves as an Operating Executive in the Global Healthcare Group for the Carlyle Group. Mr Read will join the board of directors of new company Viatris upon the completion of the merger between Mylan N.V. and Upjohn Inc., which received shareholder approval in late June 2020.
Mr Read joined Pfizer in 1978 as an operational auditor and quickly ascended to the company’s leadership team. From then until 1996, he worked in Latin America, including key appointments as Chief Financial Officer of Pfizer Mexico and country manager of Pfizer Brazil. In 1996, Mr Read was appointed president of Pfizer’s International Pharmaceuticals Group, Latin America. He was named executive vice president for Europe in 2000 and corporate vice president in 2001. Additional areas of responsibility from this time included oversight of operations in Canada, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. He later became senior vice president and group president of Pfizer’s Worldwide Biopharmaceutical Businesses. Mr Read received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Imperial College London and earned Chartered Accountants certification from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales.
“I have been impressed by the ambition of avateramedical, to set new standards with ‘the German robot’ in a global market dominated by one big player. The company’s single-use concept is brilliant, and the commercialization strategy reflects rapidly-evolving market requirements,” said Ian Read. “Beyond this, it will be a pleasure to work with such forward-thinking scientists, engineers and experts,” he added.
“It is with real honor that my board colleagues and I welcome such a proven professional as Ian, with his outstanding leadership experience to help avateramedical, on our path to commercialization. His exceptional knowledge of the healthcare industry, dealing with patients, doctors and commercial partners, plus his great experience in developing complex organizations will be a crucial part of avateramedical’s success,” said Oliver Kupka, CEO of avateramedical GmbH.
The shareholders also approved several capital measures including a convertible credit facility agreement between the Company and the majority shareholder Tennor Holding B.V. (Tennor). Under the terms of the agreement, Tennor will provide an outstanding credit facility in an aggregate amount of up to EUR 100 million. In return, avateramedical N.V. will ensure that receivables under such a convertible credit facility can be converted into ordinary shares in the Company. Consequently, a contingent share capital increase was approved by the shareholders to enable the conversion of this convertible credit facility into ordinary shares.
About avatera®
avatera® is the first German system for robot-assisted, minimally invasive surgery. Tailored precisely to the needs of future users, "The German Robot" enables precise keyhole surgery (so-called laparoscopy) with the highest level of safety for patients and maximum ergonomic comfort for surgeons and surgical teams. Thanks to avatera’s stringent single-use concept, surgeons always work with new, reliable instruments without the risk of cross-contamination or the need for cost-intensive sterilization processes. The use of German servers and the application of German and European data protection standards ensure maximum security for the protection of all sensitive data of clinics and patients. A certified quality management system and the CE mark document the complete conformity of avatera with all legal and formal requirements and confirm the high standards avateramedical applies to the safety and efficiency of the system.
avateramedical GmbH is an innovative German medical technology company in the field of robot-assisted surgery at high tech sites in Jena, Ilmenau and Hanover. The privately financed company was founded in 2011 by Prof. Dr. med. Jens-Uwe Stolzenburg and Dr. Hubertus von Gruenberg and financed by Lars Windhorst to combine the expertise of leading European surgeons, German top managers and excellent German engineers and software developers. avateramedical, with its current workforce of over 200 employees, aims to combine state-of-the-art medical technology with economic efficiency, quality, ergonomic comfort and reliability. avateramedical GmbH is a subsidiary of avateramedical N.V.
For more information, please see https://www.avatera.eu.
Contact
avateramedical GmbH
Claudia Reichenbach
Manager Marketing Communication
Phone: +49 (0)3641 2724 181
Email: Claudia.Reichenbach[at]avateramedical.com
Media Inquiries
MC Services AG
Katja Arnold / Shaun Brown / Dr. Regina Lutz
Phone: +49 (0)89 210 22 880
Email: avatera[at]mc-services.eu
