logo
  • About us
    • Leadership
  • Our approach
    • Our technologies
    • Our partners
  • Pipeline
  • Investors
    • Share price
    • RNS announcements
    • Financials and company documents
    • Shareholder Information
    • Analyst coverage
    • AIM Rule 26
    • Advisors
    • Corporate Governance
  • Media
  • Careers
    • Current job vacancies
  • Contact
December 10, 2020 Press Releases

Full Year Results

C4X Discovery Holdings plc

(“C4XD”, “C4X Discovery” or the “Company”)

Full Year Results 

A Year of Progress Across Key Drug Discovery Programmes


10 December 2020 – C4X Discovery Holdings plc (AIM: C4XD), a pioneering Drug Discovery company, today announces its full year audited results for the year ended 31 July 2020.

Dr Clive Dix, CEO of C4X Discovery, said: “2020 has also been a year of significant and focused progress for C4XD as we continue to advance our key Drug Discovery programmes within our portfolio. With robust finances now in place we are strongly positioned to generate commercially attractive data packages for future partners and to deliver long term value to our shareholders.

“Despite the hurdles that have arisen this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the pharmaceuticals sector has shown great resilience, and continues to thrive and deliver innovation. This reinforces our belief in the central role and strength of the industry and the opportunity for C4XD in meeting its need for a sustainable source of high-quality assets to build pipelines.” 

Highlights (including post-period end)

Operational Highlights

  • Post-period: Indivior commenced Phase 1 clinical trial for C4XD’s Orexin-1 antagonist, C4X_3256 (also known as INDV-2000), for the treatment of opioid dependence, with first subject dosed
  • NRF-2 lead activator molecule C4X-6746 shown to significantly inhibit disease score in pre-clinical model of inflammatory bowel disease (“IBD”). Candidate nomination studies continue
  • IL-17 oral inhibitor programme for treatment of psoriasis has been shown to significantly reduce inflammation in vivo, and is being optimised towards candidate shortlist
  • α4β7 integrin inhibitor programme for the treatment of IBD demonstrated significant selectivity vs α4β1 in vitro and oral bioavailability in PK studies. Discussions with several potential partners under CDA continue
  • LifeArc risk-share collaboration continues to progress well. C4XD and LifeArc have completed the initial phase of the collaboration to progress a small molecule MALT-1 inhibitor programme, with three novel series identified. Optimisation studies continue
  • Post-period: new collaboration with GEN-COVID Consortium to investigate the role genetics play in the susceptibility, severity and prognosis between different individuals with COVID-19
  • Conformetrix technology patent was granted in the USA

Financial Highlights

  • Revenue was £nil (2019: £nil)
  • Total loss after tax of £7.8 million or 8.10 pence per share (2019: £10.9m or 18.82 pence per share)
  • R&D expenses reduced by 35% to £6.9 million (2019: £10.6m), reflecting focused investment in key Drug Discovery programmes
  • Net assets of £8.1 million (2019: £7.0m)
  • Total fundraising of £24.2 million (before expenses) in three tranches, one post-period end:
    • October 2019 – fundraise of £7.6 million (before expenses) with a total of 50,573,808 shares issued to both new and existing investors
    • May 2020 – £1.6 million investment (before expenses) by key strategic shareholder Polar Capital with total of 10,836,700 Shares issued
    • Post-period end: October 2020 –fundraise of £15.0 million (before expenses) with a total of 107,142,858 Placing Shares and 99,169,286 Warrants issued to new and existing shareholders
  • Cash:
    • Net cash as at 31 July 2020: £5.6 million (31 July 2019: £2.4m)
    • Net cash as at 30 November 2020 following fundraise: £17.3 million

Analyst conference call today

Dr Clive Dix, Chief Executive Officer, and members of the management team will host a webcast for analysts at 10am GMT today. A copy of the final results presentation will be released later this morning on the Company website at www.c4xdiscovery.com.  Please contact Consilium Strategic Communications for details on C4XDiscovery@consilium-comms.com / +44 203 709 5700.

The Annual Report will be sent to shareholders prior to the Annual General Meeting on 19 January 2021 and will be made available on the Company’s website at that time..

Important notices

Contact Information

C4X Discovery Holdings plc

Mo Noonan, Communications+44 (0)7876 444 977

Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited (NOMAD and Broker) +44 (0)20 7886 2500

Freddy Crossley, Emma Earl (Corporate Finance)
Rupert Dearden (Corporate Broking)

Consilium Strategic Communications

Mary-Jane Elliott, Chris Gardner, Matthew Neal +44 (0)203 709 5700

About C4X Discovery

C4X Discovery (“C4XD”) is a pioneering Drug Discovery company combining scientific expertise with cutting-edge Drug Discovery technologies to efficiently deliver world‑leading medicines, which are developed by our partners for the benefit of patients.  We have a highly valuable and differentiated approach to Drug Discovery through our enhanced DNA-based target identification and candidate molecule design capabilities, generating small molecule drug candidates across multiple disease areas including inflammation, neurodegeneration, oncology and addictive disorders.  Our commercially attractive portfolio ranges from early stage novel target opportunities to late stage Drug Discovery programmes ready for a commercial deal and to date we have successfully out-licensed two programmes with one candidate in clinical development.

We collaborate with leading pharmaceutical and life sciences companies to enrich our expertise and take our assets through pre-clinical and clinical development.  Through early-stage revenue-generating licensing deals, we realise returns from our high value pre-clinical assets which are reinvested to maximise the value of our Drug Discovery portfolio.  For more information visit us at www.c4xdiscovery.com or follow us on twitter @C4XDiscovery .

Important notices

NON-EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN STATEMENT

Building for success

“We are now in a strong position to generate significant value to our shareholders by advancing our proprietary portfolio of programmes and translating some of our key programmes into partnerships.”

The financial year ended 31 July 2020 was a year of significant and focused progress with some key milestones achieved for C4XD. The commitment and dedication of the C4XD team, together with our unique technologies, mean our portfolio of assets has matured significantly during the year.

We have made great strides advancing our early stage Drug Discovery programmes by applying our cutting-edge technologies, which has resulted in a solid portfolio of novel, pre-clinical, small molecule programmes. While our proprietary portfolio is predominantly focused in the area of inflammation, we are actively pursuing other therapeutic areas including oncology and neurology.

The Board fully supports the current business strategy of out-licensing programmes at the pre-clinical stage through partnerships with pharmaceutical companies who have development and commercial capabilities, as well as significant expertise in the relevant therapeutic area. We were therefore pleased to see our first candidate CX_3256 (now INDV-2000), out-licensed to Indivior, entering Phase I clinical trials during the year. This is great news for C4XD and as we continue to drive forward potential partner discussions across the portfolio, the Company routinely assesses the partnering landscape to identify the right opportunities for out-licensing of our other lead programmes.

I am happy to say we have a diverse Board, which continues to be closely aligned with the Company’s strategy and has been particularly supportive during recent months when working practices have had to change. The Company is tracking the COVID-19 pandemic situation closely and is continuously monitoring for any potential challenges that may arise. To date there are no significant implications to our core operations due to the pandemic and we continue to focus on creating long-term value for our shareholders.

In addition, I would like to say how proud we are at C4XD of the work our CEO, Clive Dix, is doing in the fight against COVID-19. His role in the UK Vaccines Taskforce is important for our country. I believe that his appointment reflects his commitment to our industry as a whole, and the respect the industry has for his expertise. Whilst supporting the efforts to find a vaccine for COVID-19, Clive continues to be dedicated to C4XD and I am impressed by his professionalism and drive to build a successful company.

We have completed three successful financings, including an additional £15 million raise in October 2020 supported by our key existing shareholders as well as new shareholders, enabling the Company to further advance its portfolio of unique assets to near term inflection points and to strengthen the balance sheet as partnering discussions and strategic collaborations progress.

On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank our dedicated employees and management team for their ongoing commitment, creativity and hard work to make C4XD a successful global discovery player. I would like to thank our shareholders for their continued support and belief in our vision, and I am thrilled to welcome our new shareholders to the Company.

We are poised for a new and exciting year ahead.

Eva-Lotta Allan
Non-Executive Chairman
9 December 2020

CEO STATEMENT

Portfolio continues to deliver strong value potential

“It is in challenging times such as these that you understand the importance of building a strong, talented and motivated team and it is due to their resilience and fortitude that we have continued to make great progress across the C4XD Drug Discovery portfolio throughout 2020.”

Progress across our portfolio and, in particular, our key Drug Discovery programmes has continued apace. Each of our programmes has advanced, with new data and key milestones met. We were delighted to see our first molecule reach the clinic, with the first subject dosed in Indivior’s Phase 1 clinical trial for opioid dependence. This is a huge milestone for the Company and clearly demonstrates C4XD’s scientific expertise and capabilities to generate, develop and deliver new molecules that the pharmaceutical industry wants and needs to create new medicines. We look forward to the results of this trial next year.

Our oral NRF-2 programme for the treatment of inflammatory diseases continues to make progress, with compounds now showing promise in a number of indications including sickle cell disease, pulmonary arterial hypertension and, more recently, inflammatory bowel disease. More work is underway to identify the right candidate molecule to progress into IND enabling studies. We have also seen important scientific developments in both our IL-17 and α4β7 integrin inhibitor programmes, with our novel oral series of IL-17 inhibitors being optimised towards a candidate shortlist and commercial discussions with potential partners continuing. Whilst at an earlier stage, our α4β7 integrin inhibitor programme has made significant progress in 2020 and we aim to shortly move the lead series into in vivo studies. Furthermore, the identification of a second series of α4β7 integrin inhibitors underlines the value that our Conformetrix technology offers in the Drug Discovery process.

Our partnership with LifeArc® developing novel MALT-1 inhibitors for haematological cancer is progressing nicely and there is now external commercial evidence that validates this as a target in oncology. We have also entered a new partnership focused on studying the genetics of COVID-19 patients with the GEN-COVID consortium in Italy. The understanding of COVID-19 is still very naïve and we do not fully understand how it affects the human physiology and why it affects people differently, such as some ethnic minority patient groups or those with underlying health issues such as obesity. Therefore, understanding the role of genetics in this disease, which our Taxonomy3 platform does, may be key to understanding this disease better. This project has the potential to produce exciting data that may explain the way different people react to the disease and subsequently influence not only how they are treated for COVID-19, but diseases of this type in the future.

What we do is early stage work, but it is at the forefront of the next generation of medicines. Our scientists’ expertise in the Drug Discovery process, combined with our cutting-edge technologies, enable us to seek out and investigate potential targets, and to undertake complex chemistry and biological studies to create what are the beginnings of future drugs. This places us in a strong position to fulfil the pharmaceutical industry’s demand for high quality early stage drug candidates.

Whilst 2020 has presented challenges for all companies that no one could have foreseen, we have been able to adapt quickly and efficiently in how we work. As a result of our decisive initiatives, we have seen limited impact to our day-to-day activities from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Where we work with partners who have been impacted due to COVID-19, we have seen nothing but determination and commitment to enable work to progress. To this effect, our timelines may have been stretched in some cases but as the majority of our work is in the earlier non-clinical stages, we remain on track.

We thank our shareholders for their continued support that enables us to do this important work. The pharmaceutical industry has an opportunity, right now, to demonstrate its value to world health, and with the recent fundraise, we can use our Drug Discovery expertise to support our partners, for the benefit of patients. Polar Capital increased its investment with us earlier this year, and again in a post-period fundraise along with new investors, demonstrating confidence in our strategy. In total we raised £24.2 million which we will use to advance our key programmes towards out-licensing and this money sets us in good stead for the coming year.

Finally, I would like to thank our employees for their continued hard work and flexibility, despite the challenges this year has presented. Without their dedication, we could not have made the progress we have, and because of that progress, received the investment that will allow us to drive our programmes forward.

Portfolio Review

Making significant headway across our portfolio

Despite the challenges across the pharmaceutical industry caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have continued to make significant headway across our portfolio. Our first potential drug, discovered by harnessing our Conformetrix technology, has entered the clinic with our partner, Indivior, for the treatment of opioid addiction. In November 2019, C4XD’s Conformetrix technology patent was granted in the USA.

The team at C4XD has worked hard to ensure all discovery programmes remain on track where possible and as a result, our key programmes continue to demonstrate progress and generate positive data. We also entered into a new partnership with the GEN-COVID consortium to study the role genetics plays on how COVID-19 affects different individuals through utilising our proprietary Taxonomy3® platform.

Addictive disorders (Orexin-1)

Entering the clinic

C4XD completed its first licensing deal in March 2018 with Indivior UK Limited (“Indivior”) to further develop and commercialise C4XD’s oral Orexin-1 receptor antagonist C4X_3256, also known as INDV-2000, for the treatment of addiction. Under the terms of the agreement, C4XD received an upfront payment of US$10 million and could receive up to US$284 million in development, regulatory and commercialisation milestones in addition to royalties. In turn, Indivior received a global and exclusive licence to C4X_3256 and all other compounds in the same patent family and is responsible for the cost and execution of the development of C4X_3256 in multiple indications.

In September 2019, Indivior announced that it had been awarded a NIH HEAL grant for “Clinical Evaluation of C4X_3256, a non-opioid, highly-selective Orexin-1 Receptor Antagonist for the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder”, providing funding for key Phase I and Phase II enabling studies. In July 2020, Indivior commenced a Phase I clinical trial for C4X_3256, for the treatment of opioid dependence, with the first subject now dosed. This single ascending dose study in healthy volunteers is anticipated to complete by the end of 2020, with topline data expected next year. https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04413552

Inflammation (NRF-2 Activator)

Expanding into new markets

In October 2019, the Company announced progression of a series of novel potent activators of the NRF-2 pathway for the treatment of a variety of inflammatory diseases. The identified series of keap-1 inhibitors has been found to significantly activate NRF-2 following oral dosing, providing anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity.

In C4XD studies, multiple lead compounds show greater than a 12-hour duration of action following low oral dosing on activation of NRF-2 in key tissues such as the lung, the liver and in blood. More recently, one of C4XD’s lead NRF-2 activator molecules has also been shown to significantly inhibit the disease score in a pre-clinical model of IBD in a dose-dependent manner.

The Company has received non-binding term sheets for SCD and IBD indications and is currently under CDA for PAH, however, progression into IND enabling studies is now considered to be required in order to increase value and further differentiate from competitor molecules.

Inflammation (IL-17 Inhibitor)

Progressing towards commercialisation

In October 2019, C4XD announced it had identified small molecules in its oral IL-17 inhibitor programme that can selectively block IL-17 activity whilst maintaining molecular size of the molecule in the traditional “drug-like” range.

A novel, potent oral series of IL-17 inhibitors that significantly reduce IL-17 induced inflammation in vivo is being optimised towards candidate shortlist. A recently filed IND by a pharmaceutical company for the first oral IL-17 inhibitor has intensified the Company’s commercial discussions with potential partners. The oral IL-17 inhibitor programme is a significant opportunity across multiple indications.

Haematological cancer (MALT-1 Inhibitor)

Major milestones met

In November 2018, C4XD entered into a discovery collaboration with LifeArc®, a UK medical research charity, to progress medicinal chemistry efforts on a MALT-1 inhibitor programme with applicability across oncology and inflammation indications. Despite being impacted by COVID-19, the collaboration continues to progress well with the initial phase successfully completed. We note that Johnson & Johnson has progressed its small molecule MALT-1 inhibitor into Phase 1 clinical trials for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, with potential to provide the first clinical validation for MALT-1 as a target in oncology.

Three novel series have been identified by harnessing C4XD’s Conformetrix technology and data obtained in 2020 has demonstrated functional cell activity and oral bioavailability. Optimisation studies continue to increase cellular potency with the aim of showing in vivo inhibition of the target for a prototype molecule.

Inflammation (α4β7 Integrin Inhibitor)

Exciting early progress

In August 2020, the Company announced that significant progress has been made on C4XD’s early oral inhibitor programme targeting α4β7 integrin for the treatment of IBD. Effective antibody therapy against this target is already approved, removing the clinical target risk, but effective oral therapy remains highly sought after. C4XD has identified a second series of novel, potent and selective inhibitors providing a further competitive edge for this programme. This reaffirms the capability of C4XD’s Conformetrix technology to discover novel chemical scaffolds for high value challenging drug targets.

Both series have recently demonstrated oral bioavailability in PK studies with the current focus on improving PK properties to demonstrate functional inhibition of α4β7 integrin in vivo following oral dosing. The Company is currently generating improved molecules to move to in vivo studies and, despite being early stage, the Company is in confidential discussions with several potential partners.

COVID-19

Applying Taxonomy3® to understand the genetics of COVID-19

In August 2020, C4XD announced that it had entered a new collaboration with the GEN-COVID consortium, a network of more than 20 hospitals in Italy led by Professor Alessandra Renieri of the University of Siena. The collaboration will use the unique mathematical genetic analysis methodology of Taxonomy3® to investigate the role genetics plays in the widely varied disease susceptibility, severity and prognosis observed between individuals with COVID-19.

Outlook and summary

Overall, we have made significant headway across the portfolio. Our focus for the coming year is to drive our key Drug Discovery programmes, particularly those in our inflammation franchise, to the next milestone. We will continue to build out our network of partnerships and progress our pipeline of proprietary and partnered projects to a strong commercial position.

With robust finances now in place, we can continue to advance our portfolio and deliver shareholder value through the generation of high quality data packages that will be commercially attractive to future partners in the pharmaceutical industry. We remain confident that through the delivery of the next generation of high quality out-licensing opportunities, we can deliver significant value for all our shareholders.

Clive Dix
Chief Executive Officer
9 December 2020

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Continued support from our investors to execute our strategy

“The strong support from our shareholders will enable us to drive forward our portfolio of proprietary assets and to ultimately deliver shareholder value through partnerships and out-licensing opportunities.”

Revenue for the 12 months ended 31 July 2020 was £nil (2019: £nil). Grants secured are accounted for as a reduction to research and development expenses and not included in revenue.

R&D expenses, which comprise invoiced material costs, payroll costs and software costs, have decreased by 35% to £6.9 million for the year ended 31 July 2020 (2019: £10.6m). This reflects focused investment in key Drug Discovery programmes as outlined in the Non-Executive Chairman’s and CEO’s Statements.

Administrative expenses reduced during the year to £2.7 million (2019: £3.0m).

The loss after tax for the year ended 31 July 2020 was £7.8 million or 8.10 pence per share (2019: £10.9m or 18.82 pence per share).

The Group had net assets at 31 July 2019 of £8.1 million (2019: £7.0m) and cash and cash equivalents of £5.6 million (2019: £2.4m).

In November 2019 the Company raised £7.6 million before expenses on the issue of ordinary shares at 15 pence each via a placing, subscription by Directors and open offer. In May 2020, Polar Capital and other shareholders increased their investment in the business by £1.6 million before expenses through a Placing of ordinary shares at 15 pence each. Post-period, in October 2020, the Company raised £15.0 million before expenses on the issue of ordinary shares at 14 pence each via a placing. In total, the Company has raised £24.2 million (before expenses) this year including the post-period fundraise.

Both cash and costs continue to be prudently and tightly managed.

By order of the Board

Brad Hoy
Chief Financial Officer
9 December 2020

Section

Empty section. Edit page to add content here.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 596/2014 (MAR).

Download

Categories

  • Press Releases
  • News
  • Scientific papers

Archive

  • 2023
  • 2022
  • 2021
  • 2020
  • 2019
  • 2018
  • 2017
  • 2016
  • 2015
  • 2014
  • 2013
  • 2012

Press Releases

February 22, 2023

C4XD and Garvan Institute of Medical Research report successful patient stratification approach using C4XD’s new precision medicine platform PatientSeek

Press Releases

January 19, 2023

MALT-1 Inhibitor Programme Update

Press Releases

January 10, 2023

C4XD Appoints Nick Ray as Chief Scientific Officer

Press Releases

December 15, 2022

Full Year Results

Press Releases

November 28, 2022

C4XD signs exclusive global licence worth up to $402 million with AstraZeneca for the development and commercialisation of NRF2 Activator programme

Press Releases

October 20, 2022

C4XD and HitGen to collaborate in inflammation hit identification project

Press Releases

August 2, 2022

Revenue generating progress for partnered programmes with continued momentum across drug discovery portfolio

Press Releases

July 6, 2022

C4X Discovery receives first milestone payment from Sanofi

Press Releases

April 28, 2022

Half-year results 2022

Press Releases

February 1, 2022

Bhavna Hunjan Appointed to the Board as Chief Business Officer

Press Releases

January 18, 2022

Result of AGM

Press Releases

December 21, 2021

Dr Catherine Tralau-Stewart Appointed as C4XD’s Chief Scientific Officer

  • Prev
  • Next
Contact us

contact@c4xdiscovery.com

Copyright © 2021 C4XD Holdings Plc
Privacy policy

  • About us
  • Our approach
  • Pipeline
  • Investors
  • Media
  • Careers
  • Contact

C4X Discovery Holdings PLC
Manchester One
53 Portland Street
Manchester
M1 3LD

Catherine Tralau-Stewart PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Cathy joined C4XD in January 2022 with more than 20 years of senior academic and industry leadership experience. She has an in-depth knowledge of drug discovery and translation of early research innovation into robust drug discovery programmes. Previously she was Senior Director, Alliances, for Takeda Pharmaceuticals, responsible for the strategic development and management of academic alliances for Takeda for the US, Australia, Japan and Europe. Cathy started her career at GSK before moving into academia where she held senior leadership roles building drug discovery portfolios through to Phase III clinical studies, at Imperial College London, University of California San Francisco and Stanford University-Takeda Alliance. Cathy has a BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences (Biochemistry/Pharmacology) and a PhD (Clinical Sciences) University College Hospital Medical School, National Medical Laser Centre, Dept. of Surgery and ICRF (CRUK). She has published more than 25 publications and is the inventor of three granted patents and is a non-inventor contributor of many more. Cathy received the President’s award of Fellow Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), is International Meeting Chair 2022 & Previous Invited Board Director Society of Laboratory Screening & Automation (SLAS), Fellow of SLAS, Member of British Pharmacological Society, and acted as advisor to academic entrepreneurship & commercialization programmes including Stanford SPARK, UCSF, UCLA, UCSD, UC Davis and the NIH.
Catherine Tralau-Stewart PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Cathy joined C4XD in January 2022 with more than 20 years of senior academic and industry leadership experience. She has an in-depth knowledge of drug discovery and translation of early research innovation into robust drug discovery programmes. Previously she was Senior Director, Alliances, for Takeda Pharmaceuticals, responsible for the strategic development and management of academic alliances for Takeda for the US, Australia, Japan and Europe. Cathy started her career at GSK before moving into academia where she held senior leadership roles building drug discovery portfolios through to Phase III clinical studies, at Imperial College London, University of California San Francisco and Stanford University-Takeda Alliance. Cathy has a BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences (Biochemistry/Pharmacology) and a PhD (Clinical Sciences) University College Hospital Medical School, National Medical Laser Centre, Dept. of Surgery and ICRF (CRUK). She has published more than 25 publications and is the inventor of three granted patents and is a non-inventor contributor of many more. Cathy received the President’s award of Fellow Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), is International Meeting Chair 2022 & Previous Invited Board Director Society of Laboratory Screening & Automation (SLAS), Fellow of SLAS, Member of British Pharmacological Society, and acted as advisor to academic entrepreneurship & commercialization programmes including Stanford SPARK, UCSF, UCLA, UCSD, UC Davis and the NIH.
Emma Blaney PhD
Chief Operating Officer
Emma oversees the day-to-day operations of the business with responsibility for defining and implementing operations strategy, structure, and processes. As a trained medicinal chemist, Emma joined C4XD in 2014 as a Senior Programme Manager and has gained more than 18 years’ experience working on Drug Discovery programmes within the Pharmaceutical sector. She brings extensive project management experience to the Executive Team with a particular focus on outsourcing management and collaborations. Previously she was a Section Head at Peakdale Molecular leading multiple projects for pharmaceuticals clients and a Medicinal Chemistry Team Leader at GSK within the Neurology and Gastrointestinal Department. Emma has a PhD in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from the University of Leeds, and a first-class Chemistry and Pharmacology degree from the University of Liverpool.
Emma Blaney
Chief Operating Officer
Emma oversees the day-to-day operations of the business with responsibility for defining and implementing operations strategy, structure, and processes. As a trained medicinal chemist, Emma joined C4XD in 2014 as a Senior Programme Manager and has gained more than 18 years’ experience working on Drug Discovery programmes within the Pharmaceutical sector. She brings extensive project management experience to the Executive Team with a particular focus on outsourcing management and collaborations. Previously she was a Section Head at Peakdale Molecular leading multiple projects for pharmaceuticals clients and a Medicinal Chemistry Team Leader at GSK within the Neurology and Gastrointestinal Department. Emma has a PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of Leeds, and a first-class chemistry and pharmacology degree from the University of Liverpool.
Bhavna Hunjan
Chief Business Officer
Bhavna has spent almost 15 years in commercial and corporate roles, first as an investment banker at Lehman Brothers and Nomura International and then in corporate strategy at PwC and Cancer Research UK. In 2016, she was hired by C4XD to incept and establish a new team focused on business development, deal structuring and execution, commercial intelligence, financing, and strategic planning / M&A. Since then, Bhavna has led this team to execute a series of successful licensing deals and strategic partnerships, as well as driving business growth and capital raising as part of the Executive Management team. Bhavna has a first class Masters degree in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford. She was awarded a Rising Star in the Movers & Shakers in BioBusiness 2017, and also voted one of the 30 Rising Leaders in Life Sciences 2020 by In Vivo.
Bhavna Hanjan
Chief Business Officer
Bhavna has spent almost 15 years in commercial and corporate roles, first as an investment banker at Lehman Brothers and Nomura International and then in corporate strategy at PwC and Cancer Research UK. In 2016, she was hired by C4X Discovery to incept and establish a new team focused on business development, deal structuring and execution, commercial intelligence, financing, and strategic planning / M&A. Since then, Bhavna has led this team to execute a series of successful licensing deals and strategic partnerships, as well as driving business growth and capital raising as part of the Executive Management team. Bhavna has a first class Masters degree in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford. She was awarded a Rising Star in the Movers & Shakers in BioBusiness 2017, and also voted one of the 30 Rising Leaders in Life Sciences 2020 by In Vivo.
Simon Harford
Non-Executive Director
Simon’s career spans more than 30 years with significant financial and investor relations expertise in global pharmaceutical companies. Simon is currently CFO at Albireo Pharma Inc., a NASDAQ-listed biotech company where he has raised more than $200 million in equity financing and was previously CFO of Parexel International Inc., a global clinical research organisation, which was acquired by private equity in 2017. Prior to this, Simon held various financial leadership roles at GSK, including SVP Finance, Global Pharmaceuticals. During his tenure, he was responsible for finance in all pharmaceutical markets globally and was a member of the Global Pharmaceutical Operations Committee. Simon also held key financial management roles at Eli Lilly and Company over two decades including Vice President and Controller, CFO and Executive Director Finance for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and led the global investor relations function as Executive Director of Investor Relations. He also received the Lilly, Chairman’s Ovation Award 2004 for outstanding achievement to Lilly. Simon has an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.
Simon Harford
Non-Executive Director
Simon’s career expands more than 30 years with significant financial and investor relations expertise in global pharmaceutical companies. Simon is currently CFO at Albireo Pharma Inc., a NASDAQ-listed biotech company where he has raised more than $200 million in equity financing and was previously CFO of Parexel International Inc., a global clinical research organisation, which was acquired by private equity in 2017. Prior to this, Simon held various financial leadership roles at GSK, including SVP Finance, Global Pharmaceuticals. During his tenure, he was responsible for finance in all pharmaceutical markets globally and was a member of the Global Pharmaceutical Operations Committee. Simon also held key financial management roles at Eli Lilly and Company over two decades including Vice President and Controller, CFO and Executive Director Finance for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and led the global investor relations function as Executive Director of Investor Relations. He also received the Lilly, Chairman’s Ovation Award 2004 for outstanding achievement to Lilly. Simon has an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.
Natalie Walter
Non-Executive Director
Natalie is a corporate finance lawyer with more than 20 years of experience advising on international equity capital markets transactions in the healthcare sector. Natalie is currently General Counsel to Oxford Biomedica plc, a FTSE 250 gene and cell therapy company. Prior to joining Oxford Biomedica, Natalie was an Equity Partner at Covington & Burling LLP advising Boards on a range of strategic, transactional and general corporate finance matters, with particular expertise in advising on deals in the life sciences sector. Prior to this, Natalie had been an Equity Partner at Morrison & Foerster LLP and had spent part of her career as a Director and Legal Counsel on the ECM desk at Lehman Brothers. Natalie was a Board member of RSA (Holdings) Limited until March 2020.
Natalie Walter
Non-Executive Director
Natalie is a corporate finance lawyer with more than 20 years of experience advising on international equity capital markets transactions in the healthcare sector. Natalie is currently General Counsel to Oxford Biomedica plc, a FTSE 250 gene and cell therapy company. Prior to joining Oxford Biomedica, Natalie was an Equity Partner at Covington & Burling LLP advising Boards on a range of strategic, transactional and general corporate finance matters, with particular expertise in advising on deals in the life sciences sector. Prior to this, Natalie had been an Equity Partner at Morrison & Foerster LLP and had spent part of her career as a Director and Legal Counsel on the ECM desk at Lehman Brothers. Natalie was a Board member of RSA (Holdings) Limited until March 2020.
Alex Stevenson PhD
Non-Executive Director
Alex began his career as a microbiologist, working in research for a number of years before joining an NYSE-quoted drug development company. He subsequently moved into pharmaceutical and healthcare investment and has fulfilled a number of board-level investment and operational management roles. He was a Director and shareholder in Aquarius Equity from 2008, where he was responsible for identifying new investments and developing and implementing scientific strategies both pre and post-investment. These included Tissue Regenix Group plc, C4X Discovery Holdings plc and Brabant Pharma (subsequently sold to Zogenix, Inc.). Alex joined the Board of C4XD as a Non-Executive Director following Aquarius’ investment in the Company. Prior to joining Aquarius, Alex worked for IP Group plc, where he specialised in life sciences investments identifying, developing and advising a number of companies in its portfolio, some of which went on to list on AIM. He joined IP Group following its acquisition of Techtran Group Limited in 2005 and Alex is a Co-Founder of 4D pharma plc and has served as Chief Scientific Officer since 2014.
Alex Stevenson PhD
Non-Executive Director
Alex began his career as a microbiologist, working in research for a number of years before joining an NYSE-quoted drug development company. He subsequently moved into pharmaceutical and healthcare investment and has fulfilled a number of board-level investment and operational management roles. He was a Director and shareholder in Aquarius Equity from 2008, where he was responsible for identifying new investments and developing and implementing scientific strategies both pre and post-investment. These included Tissue Regenix Group plc, C4X Discovery Holdings plc and Brabant Pharma (subsequently sold to Zogenix, Inc.). Alex joined the Board of C4XD as a Non-Executive Director following Aquarius’ investment in the Company. Prior to joining Aquarius, Alex worked for IP Group plc, where he specialised in life sciences investments identifying, developing and advising a number of companies in its portfolio, some of which went on to list on AIM. He joined IP Group following its acquisition of Techtran Group Limited in 2005 and Alex is a Co-Founder of 4D pharma plc and has served as Chief Scientific Officer since 2014.
Chief Financial Officer
Brad Hoy
Brad has more than 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries and has held a number of senior financial and general management positions in both the UK and the US. Previously, Brad was Chief Financial Officer of Plethora Solutions Holdings plc, an AIM-listed specialty pharmaceutical company, Chief Executive Officer of Xcellsyz Limited, a UK venture capital-backed life science company, and Senior Director of Geron Corporation’s stem cell-focused UK subsidiary. Brad was formerly a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Directors for e-Therapeutics plc.
Brad Hoy
Chief Financial Officer
Brad has more than 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries and has held a number of senior financial and general management positions in both the UK and the US. Previously, Brad was Chief Financial Officer of Plethora Solutions Holdings plc, an AIM-listed specialty pharmaceutical company, Chief Executive Officer of Xcellsyz Limited, a UK venture capital-backed life science company, and Senior Director of Geron Corporation’s stem cell-focused UK subsidiary. Brad was formerly a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Directors for e-Therapeutics plc.
Chief Scientific Officer
Craig Fox PhD
Craig is an experienced biologist and NIH funded Principal Investigator who has worked on and managed many Drug Discovery and development projects over more than 20 years in the industry, from initial target selection right through to investigating clinical efficacy and safety in Phase 2 patient studies. Craig joined C4XD as Head of Biology in June 2015 before becoming Chief Scientific Officer in October later that year. Prior to joining C4XD, Craig was Director of Respiratory Research at Pulmagen Therapeutics, a clinical stage company spun out of Argenta in 2010. At Pulmagen, Craig managed several of its collaborations and partnerships, including those with AstraZeneca, Chiesi, Domantis, Dr Reddy’s, Skyepharma and Teijin Pharma. Craig was part of the Etiologics team that merged with Argenta Discovery in 2004 and prior to this he worked for Bayer as a Research Scientist. Craig has a PhD in Respiratory Medicine from Birmingham University and a first-class Biochemistry degree from the University of Surrey.
Craig Fox PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Craig is an experienced biologist and NIH funded Principal Investigator who has worked on and managed many Drug Discovery and development projects over more than 20 years in the industry, from initial target selection right through to investigating clinical efficacy and safety in Phase 2 patient studies. Craig joined C4XD as Head of Biology in June 2015 before becoming Chief Scientific Officer in October later that year. Prior to joining C4XD, Craig was Director of Respiratory Research at Pulmagen Therapeutics, a clinical stage company spun out of Argenta in 2010. At Pulmagen, Craig managed several of its collaborations and partnerships, including those with AstraZeneca, Chiesi, Domantis, Dr Reddy’s, Skyepharma and Teijin Pharma. Craig was part of the Etiologics team that merged with Argenta Discovery in 2004 and prior to this he worked for Bayer as a Research Scientist. Craig has a PhD in Respiratory Medicine from Birmingham University and a first-class Biochemistry degree from the University of Surrey.
Clive Dix BSc PhD HonFBPhS
Chief Executive Officer
Clive has more than 30 years’ experience through senior pharmaceutical industry positions and a degree and PhD in Pharmacology. His expertise includes an in-depth understanding of Drug Discovery and development, a broad knowledge of the science and commercial landscape across therapeutic areas and solid experience of the pharmaceutical business and finance community supporting the sector. Clive was Co-Founder and CEO of Convergence Pharmaceuticals Ltd, acquired by Biogen, and Co-Founder and CEO of PowderMed Ltd, acquired by Pfizer. Previously, he was SVP, Research and Development and a Board member of PowderJect Pharmaceuticals plc, acquired by Chiron Vaccines. Clive began his career in industry at Ciba-Geigy and GlaxoWellcome. Clive is currently a Non‑Executive Board member of the Medicines Discovery Catapult and on the Board of PHTA, the University of Birmingham’s flagship research facility. He was Chairman of the BioIndustry Association and interim Chair of the UK Vaccines taskforce who oversaw the supply of one of the most successful COVID-19 vaccine rollout programmes in the world.
Clive Dix PhD
Chief Executive Officer
Clive has more than 30 years’ experience in life science research, with over 20 years in senior pharmaceutical industry positions and a degree and PhD in Pharmacology. His expertise includes an in-depth understanding of all facets of Drug Discovery and development, a broad knowledge of the science and commercial landscape of a variety of therapeutic areas and solid experience of the pharmaceutical business and finance community supporting the sector. Clive was Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Convergence Pharmaceuticals Ltd, which was acquired by Biogen in January 2015. Clive was previously Co-Founder and Chief Executive of PowderMed Ltd, a vaccines development company acquired by Pfizer in November 2006. Before that he was Senior Vice President, Research and Development and a Board member of PowderJect Pharmaceuticals plc until its acquisition by Chiron Vaccines in 2003. Clive began his career in industry at Ciba-Geigy and then GlaxoWellcome, where he left as UK Research Director in 2001. Clive, a recent past Chairman of the BioIndustry Association, is currently Non-Executive Chairman of Centauri Ltd and a Non‑Executive Board member of the Medicines Discovery Catapult. Clive was appointed Deputy Chair of the UK Vaccines taskforce in June 2020, the group set up by the Government to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic and In December 2020, he stepped up to the role of Interim Chairman to oversee the supply of one of the most successful vaccine rollout programmes in the world.
Eva-Lotta Allan
Non-Executive Chairman
Eva‐Lotta has more than 30 years' experience in the healthcare industry. During this time, she has been a senior executive and Board member at both public and private companies. Most recently, Eva‐Lotta was Chief Business Officer (and previously a Board member) at Immunocore, where she held full responsibility for all aspects of business development and played an instrumental role in the $320 million fundraising in 2015. Prior to this, Eva‐Lotta served as Chief Business Officer and member of the Executive Committee and Euronext IPO team for Ablynx NV, as well as senior positions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Europe) Ltd, Oxford Asymmetry International plc, Oxford Glycosciences and Amersham International. Eva-Lotta currently serves as Chair of Draupnir Bio, Non-Executive Director and member of the Corporate Governance Committee and the R&D Sub-Committee of Oslo listed company, Targovax ASA, and is a Non-Executive Director and member of the Nomination and Remuneration commission of Almirall, and Non-Executive Director of Crescendo Biologics and Aleta Biotherapeutics. Eva-Lotta was a Board member of the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA).
Eva-Lotta Allan
Non-Executive Chairman
Eva‐Lotta has more than 30 years' experience in the healthcare industry. During this time, she has been a senior executive and Board member at both public and private companies. Most recently, Eva‐Lotta was Chief Business Officer (and previously a Board member) at Immunocore, where she held full responsibility for all aspects of business development and played an instrumental role in the $320 million fundraising in 2015. Prior to this, Eva‐Lotta served as Chief Business Officer and member of the Executive Committee and Euronext IPO team for Ablynx NV, as well as senior positions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Europe) Ltd, Oxford Asymmetry International plc, Oxford Glycosciences and Amersham International. Eva-Lotta currently serves as Chair of Draupnir Bio, Non-Executive Director and member of the Corporate Governance Committee and the R&D Sub-Committee of Oslo listed company, Targovax ASA, and is a Non-Executive Director and member of the Nomination and Remuneration commission of Almirall, and Non-Executive Director of Crescendo Biologics and Aleta Biotherapeutics. Eva-Lotta was a Board member of the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA).
Mario Polywka DPhil
Non-Executive Director
Mario has more than 20 years’ experience in leadership roles across the biotech industry with strong operational, commercial, strategic and drug discovery expertise. He was Chief Operating Officer of Evotec SE for 12 years, where he was involved with transactions worth more than $1.0 billion within Evotec and Oxford Asymmetry International, prior to becoming a Member of the Evotec Supervisory Board. Previously he was CEO and Chairman of Glycoform Limited, Chairman of Nanotether Discovery Sciences, and CEO of Southampton Polypeptides Limited. Mario holds a number of Non-Executive Board Director positions in biotech companies including Exscientia, Forge, Blacksmith Medicines and Orbit Discovery. Mario studied chemistry at Oxford University, where he also completed a DPhil with Professor Steve Davies and a postdoc with the late Professor Sir Jack Baldwin. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and has published a number of papers in leading publications.
Mario Polywka DPhil
Non-Executive Director
Mario has more than 20 years’ experience in leadership roles across the biotech industry with strong operational, commercial, strategic and drug discovery expertise. He was Chief Operating Officer of Evotec SE for 12 years, where he was involved with transactions worth more than $1.0 billion within Evotec and Oxford Asymmetry International, prior to becoming a Member of the Evotec Supervisory Board. Previously he was CEO and Chairman of Glycoform Limited, Chairman of Nanotether Discovery Sciences, and CEO of Southampton Polypeptides Limited. Mario holds a number of Non-Executive Board Director positions in biotech companies including Exscientia, Forge, Blacksmith Medicines and Orbit Discovery. Mario studied chemistry at Oxford University, where he also completed a DPhil with Professor Steve Davies and a postdoc with the late Professor Sir Jack Baldwin. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and has published a number of papers in leading publications.
Clare Murray PhD
SVP Drug Discovery
Clare, a trained pharmacologist, joined C4XD in 2015 as Project Manager to lead the preclinical development activities for the Orexin-1 receptor antagonist project now licensed to Indivior. She leads the Biology and Taxonomy3 teams at C4XD and, as Senior VP Drug Discovery, is jointly managing the C4XD research and development pipeline with Dr. Nick Ray. Clare has over 30 years’ experience in Drug Discovery and Development having worked in the Respiratory and Inflammation, Oncology and Emerging Innovations disease areas in AstraZeneca before joining C4XD. As Associate Director and Project Leader at AstraZeneca she provided leadership of cross-functional small molecule and biological drug discovery projects and supported development projects up to Phase 2 clinical studies. Clare was also involved in establishing the AstraZeneca Open Innovation platform and in managing academic industry partnerships. Clare has published more than 20 scientific papers, has a PhD in Neuropharmacology and a first-class Biochemistry degree from the University of Kent.
Clare Murray PhD
SVP Drug Discovery
Clare, a trained pharmacologist, joined C4XD in 2015 as Project Manager to lead the preclinical development activities for the Orexin-1 receptor antagonist project now licensed to Indivior. She leads the Biology and Taxonomy3 teams at C4XD and, as Senior VP Drug Discovery, is jointly managing the C4XD research and development pipeline with Dr. Nick Ray. Clare has over 30 years’ experience in Drug Discovery and Development having worked in the Respiratory and Inflammation, Oncology and Emerging Innovations disease areas in AstraZeneca before joining C4XD. As Associate Director and Project Leader at AstraZeneca she provided leadership of cross-functional small molecule and biological drug discovery projects and supported development projects up to Phase 2 clinical studies. Clare was also involved in establishing the AstraZeneca Open Innovation platform and in managing academic industry partnerships. Clare has published more than 20 scientific papers, has a PhD in Neuropharmacology and a first-class Biochemistry degree from the University of Kent.
Nick Ray PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Nick oversees the C4XD Drug Discovery portfolio from target selection through to pre-clinical candidate generation and partnering alongside Dr. Clare Murray, SVP Drug Discovery. Nick also leads the medicinal chemistry, structural analysis and computational chemistry/cheminformatics teams and together, with our CTO Dr Charles Blundell, is leading the continued development of our conformational analysis technology, 4Sight. Nick joined C4XD in 2016 and has more than 30 years’ experience leading key programmes at large multi-national companies including Rhône-Poulenc, Celltech and Argenta/Charles River, in the therapeutic areas of oncology, respiratory diseases, inflammation, CNS, pain and metabolic diseases. Eight of these programmes have progressed into the clinic to date. As head of the chemistry department at Charles River’s Harlow U.K. site, Nick was responsible for more than 70 chemists, fostering both the importance of strong medicinal and synthetic chemistry skills and championing professional development for his team, winning the Royal Society of Chemistry Retrosynthesis competition in 2015. He is a named inventor on over 75 patents and patent applications and has published 21 papers and presentation abstracts. Nick holds a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Birmingham, UK.
Nick Ray PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Nick oversees the C4XD Drug Discovery portfolio from target selection through to pre-clinical candidate generation and partnering alongside Dr. Clare Murray, SVP Drug Discovery. Nick also leads the medicinal chemistry, structural analysis and computational chemistry/cheminformatics teams and together, with our CTO Dr Charles Blundell, is leading the continued development of our conformational analysis technology, 4Sight. Nick joined C4XD in 2016 and has more than 30 years’ experience leading key programmes at large multi-national companies including Rhône-Poulenc, Celltech and Argenta/Charles River, in the therapeutic areas of oncology, respiratory diseases, inflammation, CNS, pain and metabolic diseases. Eight of these programmes have progressed into the clinic to date. As head of the chemistry department at Charles River’s Harlow U.K. site, Nick was responsible for more than 70 chemists, fostering both the importance of strong medicinal and synthetic chemistry skills and championing professional development for his team, winning the Royal Society of Chemistry Retrosynthesis competition in 2015. He is a named inventor on over 75 patents and patent applications and has published 21 papers and presentation abstracts. Nick holds a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Birmingham, UK.

This website uses 'cookies' to give you the best most relevant experience. To continue you have to agree to our use of cookies policy and how and why we use cookies.
You can change which cookies are set at any time and find out more about them by reading our privacy policy.

Privacy Preference Center

Privacy Preferences

When you visit any website, it may store or retrieve information through your browser, usually in the form of cookies. Since we respect your right to privacy, you can choose not to permit data collection from certain types of services. However, not allowing these services may impact your experience.

Privacy Policy

Required
You have read and agree to our privacy policy.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics to track user behavior.
Privacy Policy