Legend Biotech announces CEO transition; Zhang succeeds Xu

    Legend Biotech Corp., a Somerset-based biopharmaceutical company, announced on Monday its board of directors has appointed Dr. Frank Zhang as its CEO, effective immediately.

    In addition to CEO, Zhang will continue as chairman of the board of directors, a role he’s had since May 2015. Zhang is succeeding Dr. Yuan Xu, who resigned from her role as CEO and member of the board for personal reasons.

    “On behalf of the board of directors and myself, I want to thank Dr. Xu for her service and the contribution she has made to the board of directors and Legend Biotech during her tenure. We wish her continued success in her future endeavors,” Zhang said. “Legend has a robust pipeline of promising cell therapies entering various stages of clinical development. We are confident that we can continue to help patients in need and create shareholder value by leveraging our strong R&D capabilities.”

    Since 2015, Zhang served as chairman, CEO and executive director of GenScript, Legend Biotech’s majority shareholder. He co-founded the GenScript group in 2002 and founded Legends Biotech as a subsidiary in 2015.