Kinex Pharmaceuticals Appoints Mr. Michael Murphy to the Board of Directors

BUFFALO, N.Y., July 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Kinex Pharmaceuticals announced today that Dr. Jean-Pierre Sommadossi has elected to step down from the Board of Directors of Kinex but will continue to support the company as a Senior Advisor to the CEO. After an extensive search, the Board has appointed Michael P. Murphy to the Board of Directors to fill the Board seat vacated by Dr. Sommadossi.

Mr. Murphy is a Senior Partner in DLA Piper (one of the world's preeminent law firms and the world's largest by revenue -- $2.6 Billion -- and lawyers -- approximately 4,400). He is also a founding member of the private equity and angel investment firm Shadow Rock with holdings in the pharmaceutical, technology, real estate and other sectors. Mr. Murphy is based out of DLA Piper's New York City, London England and Hong Kong offices. He obtained his BA degree from Canisius College, his JD degree from the Faculty of Law and Jurisprudence, State University of New York at Buffalo; and also attended Executive Education and Advanced Leadership Programs at Harvard Business School. 

Dr. Jinn Wu, Chairman of the Corporate Governance Committee of the Kinex Board of Directors, stated: "Mr. Murphy brings to Kinex strong global business and legal experience. He is a sophisticated deal maker and his background will certainly assist the Kinex team in the planned global expansion of Kinex' business and its global partnerships. We look forward to working closely with him. We also thank Dr. Sommadossi for his invaluable contributions to the Kinex Board. We are delighted to have him serve as an advisor to the CEO so that we can continue to benefit from his expertise in the field of Biotechnology."

In accepting his appointment to the Board of Directors, Mr. Murphy stated, "I have been an investor with Kinex and have been consistently impressed by the quality and depth of the management team in both their pharmaceutical and business experience. Kinex has a strong and impressive pipeline of clinical oncology drug candidate drugs. The Company has established outstanding global partnerships with leading specialty pharmaceutical companies to develop its pipelines around the world -- a business strategy that will likely make a meaningful impact in global drug development.  I am excited to work with the Kinex Board and management to support the Company's strategic objectives and the global expansion of the company."

Dr. Jean Pierre Sommadossi stated, "I am honored to have served the Kinex Board for the last two years and will continue help the Company as an Advisor to the CEO. I am delighted that a long term Kinex supporter, Mr. Michael Murphy, was chosen to fill my Board seat. Michael's global experience will be great assets to assist the Company grow to the next stage".

Dr. Johnson Lau, Chairman of the Board, commented, "I'm delighted that Mr. Murphy has accepted the invitation to join the Kinex Board. His contributions will be invaluable as Kinex implements its global expansion strategy. Jean-Pierre has contributed enormously to the growth of the Company as a Board member. Although the success of his own ventures will take more of his time commitments, his willingness to continue supporting Kinex as a Special Advisor to the CEO is a reflection of his never fading support of the Company. The entire Board would like to express our most grateful thanks to Jean-Pierre for his contributions to Kinex."

SOURCE Kinex Pharmaceuticals