Dive Brief:
- Endo Pharmaceuticals announced Friday its CEO Rajiv de Silva will step down and be immediately replaced by Paul Campanelli, current president of Endo's generic and over-the-counter drug business.
- De Silva served as CEO of Endo for only three and half years. Prior to joining the company, he was president of Valeant Pharmaceuticals where he played a key role in its growth-through-acquisition strategy.
- Campanelli was the CEO of Par Pharmaceuticals prior to Endo acquiring the company for $8 billion in 2015.
Dive Insight:
Once a Wall Street darling and lauded for its innovative business model of buying growth, Valeant is now the image of corruption and bad behavior in the pharma industry.
Not too long ago, Valeant was praised by Wall Street for its strategy of buying only late-stage and already-marketed products, while keeping R&D costs to a minimum. During his time at Valeant, De Silva — first as chief operating officer and then as president — was an integral part of executing that strategy.
Joining Endo as CEO in 2013, he brought that strategy with him and quickly began buying companies and assets at a rapid clip. He made 10 acquisitions between joining the company in 2013 and buying Par in 2015, earning the moniker 'mini-Valeant' for the company.
Yet, the tides turned for Valeant, which is now plagued by scandal, accusations of potential fraud and continued criticism over drug price hikes. Just as Valeant's business model is now out of favor, Endo has been doing its best to distance itself. De Silva's departure looks to be the latest move aimed at improving its image.
The company said little about why deSilva is leaving in its public statement, and de Silva only indicated that "the time is right for me to move on to new professional opportunities."
"Given the continued evolution of Endo's business and Paul's impressive track record of delivering strong operating results, the Board concluded that Paul is the right leader for Endo at this juncture as we focus on execution and increasing the value of our attractive U.S. Branded, U.S. Generic and International pharmaceutical assets," said Endo Chairman Roger H. Kimmel in the statement.