SINGAPORE, April 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tessa Therapeutics Ltd. (Tessa), a clinical-stage cell therapy company developing next-generation cancer treatments for hematological malignancies and solid tumors, today announced the appointment of Wilson W. Cheung as its chief financial officer effective April 1, 2022. Mr. Cheung brings to Tessa more than 25 years of experience in accounting and corporate finance, compliance, and corporate leadership at both public and private companies with presence in both the U.S. and China. He joins Tessa as the Company is advancing the clinical exploration of its autologous CD30-CAR-T therapy (TT11) and its allogeneic CD30.CAR EBVST therapy (TT11X) programs.
As CFO, Mr. Cheung will lead Tessa’s overall fiscal management, as well as the company’s investor relations, and business development strategy. Mr. Cheung will initially operate in the U.S. before relocating to Tessa’s global headquarters in Singapore. Mr. Cheung will report to John Ng, CTO and acting CEO.
“Adding a Chief Financial Officer with Wilson’s track record of success, including private placement, IPO and public company experience, marks another important inflection for Tessa following the recent presentation of compelling clinical data from our TT11 and TT11X cell therapy programs at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH),” stated Mr. Ng. “CAR-T is one of the most dynamic sectors in biotechnology, and we believe our autologous CD30-CAR-T therapy, TT11, and our allogeneic “off-the-shelf” CD30.CAR EBVST therapy, TT11X, place Tessa in a prime position to capitalize on expanding investor interest in the space. As CFO, Wilson will be our emissary to the investment community, while ensuring Tessa has the proper financial structures and discipline in place to enable our near-term and longer-range growth objectives.”
Prior to Tessa, Mr. Cheung served as EVP and CFO at Apollomics Inc. during which time he led the efforts to complete a US$124 million Series C round. Prior to Apollomics, Mr. Cheung was CFO at KBP Biosciences, Inc. and served as SVP and CFO at SciClone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. where he led the sale of SciClone to a private equity firm for more than US$600 million. Before SciClone, Mr. Cheung worked for Velti Plc as CFO and was responsible for leading the company’s U.S. IPO and a follow-on offering that raised more than US$340 million. Prior to Velti Plc, Mr. Cheung served as CFO at AXT, Inc.
As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Mr. Cheung began his career in public accounting with KPMG LLP and Deloitte LLP. He holds a B.A. in Economic-Business from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and is a Certified Director of Corporate Governance from UCLA’s Executive Program.
“I am excited to join the team at Tessa Therapeutics, especially at such an exciting time for the Company,” stated Mr. Cheung. “With multiple milestones on the horizon, I look forward to working with John, the Board of Directors and my new colleagues to build Tessa into a global CAR-T leader.”
About Tessa Therapeutics
Tessa Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation cell therapies for the treatment of hematological cancers and solid tumors. Tessa’s lead clinical asset, TT11, is an autologous CD30-CAR-T therapy currently being investigated as a potential treatment for relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma (Phase 2). TT11 has been granted RMAT designation by the FDA and PRIME designation by European Medicine Agency. Tessa is also advancing an allogeneic “off-the shelf” cell therapy platform targeting a broad range of cancers in which Epstein Barr Virus Specific T Cells (EBVSTs) are augmented with CD30-CAR. A therapy using this platform is currently the subject of a Phase 1 clinical trial in CD30-positive lymphomas. Tessa has its global headquarters in Singapore, where the company has built a state of the art, commercial cell therapy manufacturing facility. For more information on Tessa, visit www.tessacell.com.
Cautionary Note on Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, to the fullest extent applicable) including, without limitation, with respect to various regulatory filings or clinical study developments of the Company. You can identify these statements by the fact that they use words such as “anticipate,” “estimate”, “expect”, “project”, “intend”, “plan”, “believe”, “target”, “may”, “assume” or similar expressions. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and important factors that may cause actual events or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, including, without limitation, those related to the Company’s financial results, the ability to raise capital, dependence on strategic partnerships and licensees, the applicability of patents and proprietary technology, the timing for completion of the clinical trials of its product candidates, whether and when, if at all, the Company’s product candidates will receive marketing approval, and competition from other biopharmaceutical companies. The Company cautions you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made, and disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any such statements to reflect any change in expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release represent the Company’s views only as of the date hereof and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. The Company’s products are expressly for investigational use pursuant to a relevant investigational device exemption granted by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, or equivalent competent body.
Tessa Therapeutics Media Contact
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.
Johanna Bennett
+1-212-375-2686
jbennett@tiberend.com
Dave Schemelia
+1-609-468-9325
dschemelia@tiberend.com
