Owlstone Medical is in the unique position of establishing a new diagnostic modality in breath that has substantial advantages over blood as a core sample type for clinicians and for academic and pharmaceutical researchers for the early detection of disease and to enable precision medicine approaches to patient care.
Over the coming period the focus of the business is on execution, building on commercial success with major clients for additional deals and repeat business, launching innovative breath tests to the market in areas of high clinical need with large market opportunities, and supporting growth ambitions by deepening internal systems and infrastructure and securing sufficient financing to enable the potential of Breath Biopsy to be realized.
Neil joins Owlstone Medical from GW Pharmaceuticals, a publicly listed (NASDAQ: GWPH) pharmaceutical company, where he served as Vice President and Group Financial Controller. During his tenure, Neil helped oversee the maturation of the company from a medium-sized UK-listed partner-funded R&D company to a 900-person global commercial organisation. Over this period, he demonstrated broad knowledge of international financial reporting standards and SEC compliance, was significantly involved in over $1 billion of public markets fundraising, and built the finance teams and systems needed to support the rapid growth of the business.
Prior to this, Neil acted as Financial Controller at Jagex Ltd., and spent six years with Deloitte, advising a range of listed and private biotech and pharmaceutical clients. Neil is a chartered accountant and is a Fellow of the Institute of the Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
Neil Tween, CFO at Owlstone Medical, commented: “I am delighted to be joining Owlstone Medical at this exciting time and look forward to contributing to the growth of the business as it pursues its important mission to save over 100,000 lives and $1.5 billion in healthcare costs.”
Billy Boyle, co-founder and CEO at Owlstone Medical, said: “Neil is an excellent addition to the world-class team we have built at Owlstone Medical to realize the potential of Breath Biopsy in a wide range of applications including oncology and liver disease.” He continued: “He brings the experience and financial discipline that will see us through this important next phase of growth, and I and the Board welcome him to the team.”