CureVac has announced the appointment of Thaminda Ramanayake as the new Chief Business Officer, effective June 1, 2024.

“Thaminda’s extensive experience in advancing corporate strategy, business development and strengthening strategic partnerships in specific areas will be a tremendous asset to CureVac as we work to progress best-in-class mRNA vaccines and medicines across multiple therapeutic areas,” said Dr. Alexander Zehnder, Chief Executive Officer of CureVac.

“Ramanayake is an accomplished strategist whose distinctive leadership and advisory expertise will make him an essential thought partner in accelerating the development of impactful infectious disease, oncology and molecular therapies” Zehnder stated.

Ramanayake has built a strong track record of successful clinical collaborations, M&A, asset in-licensing and strategic financing initiatives over more than 15 years of biopharma development and deal-making. He joined CureVac from Affini-T Therapeutics, where he served as Chief Business Officer and was responsible for creating the company’s business development organization.

He previously served as Vice President and Global Head of Business Development in Oncology at Sanofi, where he established the Clinical Trial Supply Agreement Center of Excellence and negotiated collaborations valued in the hundreds of millions to billions of dollars. He also held positions at BioMarin Pharmaceuticals where he in-licensed numerous gene therapy and oligonucleotide-based assets in hearing loss, cardiology, neurology and other therapeutic areas, and at Amgen, where he negotiated several international commercialization agreements.

With an educational background in both immunology and business, Ramanayake began his career as a scientist at Johnson & Johnson and later held a succession of Wall Street business development and consulting roles. He holds a master’s degree in immunology from the University of Rochester Strong Medical Center and completed an MBA in Finance at the University of Rochester Simon School of Business. He holds a bachelor’s degree in cellular, molecular and systems biology from Berea College.

“With promising data accumulating in CureVac’s vaccine programs and the first clinical results in oncology anticipated later this year, it is an exciting time to join this pioneering team,” said Ramanayake.

“My career has centered on immunology and oncology, so I have an immense appreciation for the decades of research CureVac has contributed to the mRNA field. One of the benefits of mRNA is its potential to deliver transformative medicines widely and equitably, offering greater access compared to other modalities. CureVac combines industry-shaping technology and outstanding talent, and I look forward to contributing to the company’s mission to use therapeutic mRNA to transform people and patients’ lives,” he added.