David Guyer, MD
CEO & Chairman
Ophthotech Corporation
Biography
Under Dr. Guyer’s leadership, Ophthotech raised more than $350 million in financing from May to September 2013, including a $192 million IPO, a multi-tranched $125 million royalty financing deal with Novo A/S and a $50 million Series C private funding round. In February 2014, Ophthotech completed a follow-on public offering resulting in gross proceeds to the Company of $59.9 million. In May 2014, Ophthotech entered into an ex-US licensing and commercialization deal for Fovista® with Novartis potentially worth over $1 billion, inclusive of $330 million in an upfront fee ($200 million) and near-term enrollment milestones ($130 million), excluding future royalties, which places the deal as one of the largest ex-US partnering transactions ever in the biotechnology industry.
Following a successful career in academic medicine as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at New York University School of Medicine, Dr. Guyer co-founded and served as CEO and Director at Eyetech Pharmaceuticals, where he led the company through private, public and corporate financings totaling over $400 million. He also oversaw the rapid development and successful commercialization of Macugen®, the first FDA-approved anti-VEGF treatment for wet AMD. OSI Pharmaceuticals subsequently acquired Eyetech in a deal valued at $935 million.