Fusion Antibodies appoints interim finance chief

Preclinical antibody developer Fusion Antibodies announced the immediate appointment of Stephen Smyth as its interim chief financial officer on Thursday.

The AIM-traded firm said Stephen Smyth, boasting more than 25 years of experience spanning audit, accounting, finance, and operations management, had a track record of contributing to both the public accounting sector and commercial industries.

It said his past professional ventures included as CFO at Sera Global LP and occupying senior finance positions at entities including Cormark Securities and PwC.

Smyth is a chartered accountant and an active partner at FPM - a firm with a strong presence throughout the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Fusion said Smyth's role at FPM involved offering virtual finance function solutions, catering to a broad client base encompassing budding start-ups and expansive, private equity-backed multinationals.

To enhance its financial conservation strategy, Fusion said it had decided to engage Smyth's expertise on a part-time basis.

It said he would be complemented by a proficient team from FPM, which would be responsible for providing the company with outsourced finance function services.

The collaboration with Smyth and FPM was expected to continue until Fusion Antibodies saw a resurgence in trading, reaching a threshold that justifies the induction of a permanent CFO and an integrated in-house finance department.

“We are pleased to welcome Stephen on board to manage our finance team,” said chief executive officer Adrian Kinkaid.

“We have been through a period of change and as we are keeping costs down, this is an ideal solution for us at the current time to conserve cash.”

At 1406 BST, shares in Fusion Antibodies were down 10.84% at 6.13p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.