After Amarin's tussle with investor group Sarissa Capital led to a restructuring and a board shuffle, the struggling drugmaker is undergoing its third CEO shake-up in just over a year.
This time, the company is giving a familiar face the official CEO title, tapping former interim chief Aaron Berg for the post.
For a few months last year, Berg took the reins at Amarin after former CEO Karim Mikhail abruptly resigned in March of 2023.
After that departure, Amarin's board quickly tapped Berg, who has been with the company since 2012 and most recently served as executive vice president and president of the U.S. business, to lead on an interim basis.
Then in July 2023, Amarin selected former Cardis exec Patrick Holt for the CEO job. At the same time, Amarin said it was laying off its entire U.S. sales force and trimming its non-staff sales by 30%.
Meanwhile, Amarin also faced a fight for control with activist investor Sarissa Capital last year. The latter company argued that the launch of the drugmaker's sole product, fish oil-derived heart pill Vascepa, was “behind schedule” in Europe and eventually won out when seven Amarin board members left their posts.
When Holt was appointed CEO, he said “decisive action” was needed to “realize Amarin’s full potential.”
Less than a year later, the former CEO is out the door and will “pursue other opportunities,” the company said in a Tuesday press release.
It’s high time Berg officially secured the role after several positions at Amarin spanning more than a decade.
“No one knows the company better than Aaron, and we look forward to him contributing meaningfully as CEO,” board chairman Odysseas Koastas, M.D., said in a statement.
The latest exec change comes after Vascepa brought in revenues of $70.6 million last year, a 21% plunge from 2022’s sales of $89.5 million
“As I begin this new role, my focus is clear—to find ways to deliver value for investors, and to maximize the potential of Vascepa/Vazkepa for patients,” Berg said in a statement.
Vascapa goes by Vazkepa in Europe, where it recently secured a patent allowing market exclusivity through 2039.
The layoffs and restructuring should deliver $40 million of annual savings, the company said in its 2024 financial guidance. Amarin's continued focus is on “cash preservation” to “support continued operations.”