RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – Life science firm Liquidia, fresh off an acquisition and continuing to push development of its lead drug candidate, now has a new chief financial officer.

Michael Kaesta, a veteran executive with previous experience at Sanofi among other drug firms, replaces interime CFO Steve Bariahtaris.

The change was announced Monday.

Here is the full announcement:

Liquidia Corporation (NASDAQ: LQDA) today announced Michael Kaseta has been appointed Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective immediately. He succeeds Steve Bariahtaris who has served as Liquidia’s interim CFO since August 2020. Mr. Bariahtaris has agreed to provide assistance to the Company for a short period of time to support a smooth transition.

“After an extensive search and thorough review of many outstanding candidates, it is with great pleasure that, today, we welcome Mike Kaseta to the Liquidia team,” said Neal Fowler, Chief Executive Officer at Liquidia. “I am confident that Mike’s financial expertise, business acumen, relevant therapeutic knowledge, as well as his extensive leadership across companies at varying stages in their lifecycle, make him a well-suited leader to support the execution of our plan and position us for growth as a fully integrated company that now includes RareGen and LIQ861 on the horizon, if approved.”

Mr. Fowler added, “In the four months since being appointed interim CFO, Steve’s contributions to our business were both significant and exceptional, leaving us with a stronger balance sheet and a high-performing finance function. We are very grateful for his unwavering commitment to our business during this time, as well as his close involvement in selecting and onboarding Mike as his successor.”

Mr. Kaseta joins Liquidia with an extensive background in corporate finance, business strategy and the commercialization of biopharma products. Prior to Liquidia, Mr. Kaseta served as the Chief Financial Officer at Aerami Therapeutics, a private biotech company focused on the development of improved therapies for the treatment of severe respiratory diseases, including pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Previously, Mr. Kaseta served as the Chief Financial Officer at Aralez Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ARLZ) and spent eleven years at Sanofi in a variety of financial roles, culminating in the Chief Financial Officer at Sanofi SA for North America Global Services and the North America Pharmaceutical Region. In this role he managed a $10 billion business covering several product launches and over one hundred products across eight therapeutic areas.

“I am thrilled to join Liquidia at such a pivotal time for the company and to have the opportunity to contribute to its mission to bring much needed treatment options to the PAH community,” said Michael Kaseta, Chief Financial Officer at Liquidia Corporation. “I look very forward to developing a close and productive working relationship with the Liquidia leadership team and to advance our near and long-term strategies for value creation and growth.”

Mr. Kaseta holds a BBA in accounting from James Madison University and is a CPA (inactive) licensed in the state of New Jersey.