Francis Sarena

Mr. Sarena joined Apexigen as Chief Operating Officer in January 2022. Mr. Sarena is a seasoned biotech executive with a track record of operational success, transactional acumen, and guiding companies through different stages to maximize performance. He has overseen strategic planning and execution, business development, investor relations, commercial, project management, legal, IP, quality, and compliance and has significant executive experience in company-wide financial planning, budgeting, and organizational development. From 2010 to 2021, Mr. Sarena served at Five Prime Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: FPRX) in positions of increasing responsibility, most recently as Chief Strategy Officer. He was a key leader in Five Prime’s transition from a private, research-focused company to a public clinical-stage company with a growing pipeline of cancer therapies and in the company’s sale to Amgen for $1.9 billion. Prior to Five Prime, Mr. Sarena served as Vice President and General Counsel of Facet Biotech Corporation (Nasdaq: FACT) from 2008 until 2010 when Abbott Laboratories acquired Facet. From 2006 to 2008, Mr. Sarena served in roles of increasing responsibility with PDL BioPharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: PDLI), most recently as Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary. He began his career at Bingham McCutchen LLP. Mr. Sarena earned his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law and holds a B.S., summa cum laude, in finance from San Francisco State University.