IO Biotech (Nasdaq: IOBT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel, immune-modulating cancer vaccines based on its T-win® vaccine platform, today announced the appointment of Devin Smith as the company’s first General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer. Mr. Smith will oversee all company legal activities and provide strategic guidance and corporate governance.
“We are excited to welcome Devin as a member of our executive team,” said Mai-Britt Zocca, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of IO Biotech. “With over two decades of legal experience in the industry, his knowledge and insight will be invaluable throughout IO Biotech. He will play a critical role in our operations as we continue to grow as a company, build partnerships and advance our pipeline through the clinic.”
Mr. Smith added, “IO Biotech is at an incredibly exciting point in their journey. I’m thrilled to join the IO Biotech team and I look forward to not only help support the company execute its strategic plan, but also contributing to IO Biotech’s continued growth and its commitment to disrupting the way cancer is treated.”
Mr. Smith has more than 25 years of legal and compliance experience serving clients in the life science industries. Mr. Smith joins IO Biotech from Yumanity Therapeutics, Inc., a publicly traded biotechnology company, where he served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. At Yumanity, he helped lead the sale of the company’s neuroscience assets to Johnson & Johnson and a reverse merger with a privately held oncology immunotherapy company. Prior to Yumanity, Mr. Smith served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Minerva Neurosciences, Inc., where he was responsible for all legal, governance and compliance matters, and led the sale of potential royalties to Royalty Pharma for upfront and potential milestone payments of $155 million. Before joining Minerva, Mr. Smith served as General Counsel of Stallergenes Greer plc, a publicly traded, global biopharmaceutical company focused on allergy immunotherapy products. Previously, Mr. Smith led the North American legal department for EMD Serono, Inc., the biopharmaceutical division of Merck KGaA. Mr. Smith received his J.D. from Suffolk University Law School and his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill.
