Bavarian Nordic names new CEO; Abivax and ProQR add key leaders
Every Friday, The Leadership Edit looks at the people taking new roles across European biotech and what their moves may tell us about the companies they join. We’ll follow chief executives, scientific and medical leaders, and other appointments that mark a change in direction or a new stage of growth. For this first edition: a new CEO for Bavarian Nordic, launch preparations at Abivax and an AI push at ProQR.
Bavarian Nordic: Tarja Stenvall to become CEO. The Danish vaccine maker has chosen the former Sanofi executive to succeed Paul Chaplin on Oct. 15. Stenvall brings commercial and vaccine experience to a company that grew under Chaplin from a research-focused biotech into a global vaccine supplier. Go deeper.
Abivax: Two hires ahead of a possible launch. Chris Rabbat, who has led global medical affairs since 2023, has become chief medical officer. He succeeds Fabio Cataldi, who will leave in the fourth quarter. Abivax also appointed former Caribou Biosciences executive Tim Kelly as chief technical officer, overseeing manufacturing, quality and IT. The French biotech is building these functions as it prepares for the potential commercialization of its ulcerative colitis drug obefazimod. Go deeper.
ProQR: AI expertise moves into the leadership team. The Dutch RNA editing biotech named former Eli Lilly executive Chris Hart chief data and AI officer. It also brought Hugging Face co-founder Thomas Wolf onto its board as a strategic AI adviser. Hart will lead work to apply AI across drug discovery and development. The appointments come as ProQR tests AX-0811, its first clinical program identified through an AI-enabled discovery process. Go deeper.
Nuclera: Carl Raimond takes over from a co-founder. Raimond, formerly president of Olink Proteomics, is the new CEO of the Cambridge, UK-based protein technology company. Co-founder Michael Chen moves to the role of chief scientific and business officer. Nuclera is expanding applications for its protein production platform, including antibody screening; Raimond’s will focus on attracting more customers and growing the business. Go deeper.
Ona Therapeutics: Aleix Prat becomes CMO. The Barcelona-based ADC developer appointed the oncologist as its lead candidate, ONA-255, advances through a Phase 1a study. Prat has chaired Ona’s scientific advisory board since 2025 and helped identify and validate the target behind the drug. Jutta Amersdorffer moves from the medical role to chief development officer and will continue to lead development execution. Go deeper.
Lift Therapeutics: Daniel Passeri becomes CEO. The London-based cancer immunotherapy company hired the former Cue Biopharma CEO as it prepares to take its neutrophil-based treatment into a first human study, planned for early 2027. Bo Rode Hansen, who had served as interim CEO, becomes president and remains on the board. The company has also changed its name from LIfT BioSciences to Lift Therapeutics. Go deeper.
