BRIEF—Vifor Pharma appoints new chief executive

Swiss drugmaker Vifor Pharma has appointed Abbas Hussain, former global president for pharma and vaccines at GlaxoSmithKline, as chief executive.

He will replace Stefan Schulze, who Vifor said is stepping down for personal reasons.

Prior to GSK, Dr Hussain worked for 20 years for the US pharmaceutical group Eli Lilly, holding management positions at sites in the USA, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Chairman Jacques Theurillat said: “Abbas Hussain brings over 30 years of track record at an international level in the healthcare sector, and also an impressive experience across the pharmaceutical value chain in both mature and emerging markets.”