FORT WASHINGTON, Pa., July 8, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vitae Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs, today announced that Art Fratamico, MBA, has been named Chief Business Officer and Richard Morris, CPA, has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Fratamico oversees Vitae's corporate and business development plans. Mr. Morris has assumed responsibility for the company's finance, investor relations and administration departments.
"We are delighted to welcome Art and Rich to the Vitae team. We believe that Art's experience successfully leading corporate development and commercial efforts at large and small pharmaceutical firms, and Rich's track record of finance management and strong executive leadership, will prove vital to Vitae as we advance our pipeline of novel therapies," said Jeffrey Hatfield, Vitae's President and Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Fratamico joins Vitae with more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Most recently, he served as Chief Business Officer of Flexion Therapeutics, where he led all corporate development activities for the company's research and development programs. Prior to that, Mr. Fratamico served as the Chief Business Officer of Trevena Inc., where he led the company's public and investor relations programs, and oversaw the commercial planning, marketing and forecasting activities for their product portfolio. He has also held senior positions in business and corporate development at Gemin X Pharmaceuticals, MGI Pharma and Hoechst Marion Roussel. Mr. Fratamico holds an MBA in Marketing from Drexel University and a BS in Pharmacy from Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science.
"Vitae's ability to leverage its drug-discovery platform has resulted in the rapid discovery of small molecule product candidates in important therapeutic areas, including diabetes, Alzheimer's, autoimmune disorders, acute coronary syndrome and atopic dermatitis," said Mr. Fratamico. "I look forward to playing a key role in the expansion of Vitae's business operations."
Mr. Morris has more than 15 years of experience in the life sciences industry. Most recently, he served as Vice President, Financial Planning and Strategic Analysis for ViroPharma where he was responsible for the company's global short- and long-term financial planning, company-wide strategic planning, business growth and profit optimization, M&A valuations and corporate finance defense initiatives. Prior to that, he served as ViroPharma's Controller and Chief Accounting Officer, where he directed the company's consolidated financial accounting, tax and finance operations. Mr. Morris holds a BS in Accounting from Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia and is a certified CPA.
"Vitae's proprietary discovery platform has positioned the company as a leader in structure-based drug discovery and enabled the company to expand its clinical development efforts," said Mr. Morris. "I am thrilled to join Vitae as it works to optimize its discovery and development platform to progress compounds in important disease areas."
About Vitae Pharmaceuticals
Vitae Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage, privately held biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing novel, small-molecule drugs for diseases where there are significant unmet medical needs. The company is developing a robust and growing portfolio of potential first- or best-in-class product candidates generated by its proprietary CONTOUR® structure-based discovery platform, including: VTP-34072 for diabetes and metabolic syndrome, VTP-37948 for Alzheimer's disease, VTP-43742 for autoimmune disorders, VTP-38443 for acute coronary syndrome and VTP-38543 for atopic dermatitis.
Vitae strives to be the best in the world at structure-based drug discovery, combining CONTOUR® with the insights of a team of accomplished scientists, to rapidly discover and advance product candidates for validated but difficult-to-drug targets in multiple disease areas.
For additional information, please visit the company's website at www.vitaepharma.com.