Hugo joined Topas Therapeutics in April 2024 as Chief Executive Officer. He has an extensive and diverse career spanning three decades within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, characterized by strategic and leadership roles, including CEO of RQ Biotechnology, Chief Commercial Officer at Imbria Pharmaceuticals and Chief Business Officer and Managing Director at 20Med Therapeutics. With a focus on guiding companies toward success, Hugo has previously led R&D, Industrial Affairs as well as Commercial teams and is experienced in licensing, fundraising and forging strategic partnerships. He has held executive positions around the world, including Managing Director of Sanofi UK and Ireland, and Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for the Sanofi Pasteur MSD in France, along with being the Vice-President of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. Hugo holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Salford and has completed further studies in Finance at London Business School and Leadership at Duke University.

Christian joined Topas Therapeutics in June 2022 and, as Chief Operating Officer, is responsible for all CMC (chemistry, manufacturing & controls) activities, as well as project management. He spent 22 years at Merck in pharmaceutical R&D and operations, most recently as Head of Strategy, Global Healthcare Operations. His experience covers the healthcare value chain from late-stage research, pharmaceutical development and sterile production to franchise support and operations strategy. Christian is trained as a biochemist and received his PhD in immunology from Eberhard-Karls-University in Tübingen, Germany.

Cristina joined Topas in September 2021 and, as Chief Medical Officer, is responsible for all preclinical, translational, and clinical development programs. She spent 11 years at Roche in various executive positions, including Life Cycle Leader for the development of the IL-6 receptor antagonist tocilizumab (Actemra) for rheumatic diseases. She also served as Medical Director of Roche’s affiliate in Italy. Following Roche, she joined Novimmune, serving for nine years as Chief Medical Officer before the company was acquired by Swedish Orphan Biovitrum (SOBI). At Novimmune, she set up the clinical development department and was responsible for the global development strategy for drug candidates from translational activities through clinical development and registration. Cristina received her MD and board certification in endocrinology from the University of Milan.

Anne serves as Chief Financial Officer at Topas. She brings more than 15 years of experience in financial operations at biotech and medtech companies throughout Europe. She previously served as the CFO and Co-Founder of Breath Therapeutics GmbH, where she was instrumental in securing the financing (EUR 43.5 million) as well as executing the sale of the company to Zambon S.p.A. in 2019, with a deal value up to EUR 500 million. Anne also served as CFO at Rigontec and had an active role in the execution of Rigontec’s trade sale to MSD (known as Merck & Co. in North America), a deal worth up to EUR 464 million. Throughout her career, Anne has been responsible for corporate fundraising, executing trade sales and licensing agreements, and preparing for IPOs in several senior executive and advisory roles in the life sciences industry. Anne holds a graduate degree in Business Administration from Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich and has completed graduate studies in public health.

Alex joined Topas Therapeutics in August 2024, bringing over 20 years of experience in partnering, licensing, alliance management, and intellectual property within the BioPharma sector. His IP commercialization experience spans from early-stage research, including at Oxford and Cambridge Universities, through start-ups including RQ Biotechnology, to multinational corporations such as Oxford BioMedica PLC and GE Healthcare. Alex has extensively worked throughout the entire IP lifecycle, from invention protection (including as an inventor on 14 PCT patent applications) through complex commercial licensing transactions to patent litigation. He has led over 50 high-value IP-focused transactions worldwide, including clinical asset licenses, global strategic alliances, new venture capital-funded spinouts and product royalty buy-outs. Alex holds an MBA with Distinction from Warwick Business School and a PhD in Biotechnology from the University of Cambridge.