Juergen Ernst to retire from Pharming's Board of Supervisory Directors after more than 11 years of distinguished service

Ms. Debora Jorn named as new Vice-Chair

LEIDEN, Netherlands, Nov. 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Pharming Group N.V. (Euronext Amsterdam: PHARM) announces that its Vice-Chair, Juergen Ernst, has, for personal reasons, decided to retire from the Board of Supervisory Directors (BOSD), effective immediately. Ms. Debora Jorn, a member of the BOSD, will succeed Juergen as Vice-Chair.

Juergen Ernst served as Vice-Chair of the BOSD for more than 11 years after being appointed in April 2009. During his long tenure, Juergen played an important role in the transformation of Pharming from an R&D focused business to a profitable biopharmaceutical company with its own international commercial operations and an advancing pipeline.

Paul Sekhri, Chairman of Pharming's Supervisory Board, commented:

"On behalf of the BOSD and the Company, we are very grateful to Juergen for the more than 11 years of service and dedication he has shown to Pharming. We thank him for his leadership, courage, and loyalty during his tenure and we wish him a long and happy retirement."

Juergen Ernst added:

"Shortly after a long executive career in the pharmaceutical industry, I was invited to play a supervisory role in unlocking the enormous potential of Pharming, which, I am proud to say, the Company has successfully delivered upon and continues to develop. With the next stage in its development now around the corner, I believe the time is right for my retirement and, in so doing, allowing my talented colleagues the opportunity to further advance Pharming's growth. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with Pharming and wish my colleagues on the BOSD and in the Company the very best of success for the future." 

Sijmen de Vries, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"Juergen joined Pharming's BOSD at a crucial point in the Company's development. Under his guidance, the Company transformed into one of the first European biotech company to become profitable from direct commercialisation of its own developed product on both sides of the Atlantic. The Board of Management would like to thank him sincerely for his patience, guidance, trust and perseverance, and wish him all the best in his retirement."

About Pharming Group N.V.

Pharming Group N.V. is a global, commercial stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative protein replacement therapies and precision medicines for the treatment of rare diseases and unmet medical needs.

The flagship of our portfolio is our recombinant human C1 esterase inhibitor, or rhC1INH, franchise. C1INH is a naturally occurring protein that downregulates the complement cascade in order to control swelling in affected tissues.

Our lead product, RUCONEST® is the first and only plasma-free rhC1INH protein replacement therapy. It is approved for the treatment of acute hereditary angioedema, or HAE, attacks. We are commercializing RUCONEST® in the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom through our own sales and marketing organization, and the rest of the world through our distribution network.

We are also developing rhC1INH for subsequent indications, including pre-eclampsia, acute kidney injury and we also investigating the clinical efficacy of rhC1INH in COVID-19.

In addition, we are studying our oral precision medicine, leniolisib (a phosphoinositide 3-kinase delta, or PI3K delta, inhibitor), for the treatment of activated PI3K delta syndrome, or APDS, in a registration enabling Phase 2/3 study in the US and Europe.

Furthermore, we are also leveraging our transgenic manufacturing technology to develop next-generation protein replacement therapies most notably for Pompe disease, which program is currently in the preclinical stage.

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including with respect to timing and progress of Pharming's preclinical studies and clinical trials of its product candidates, Pharming's clinical and commercial prospects, Pharming's ability to overcome the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic to the conduct of its business, and Pharming's expectations regarding its projected working capital requirements and cash resources, which statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, but not limited to the scope, progress and expansion of Pharming's clinical trials and ramifications for the cost thereof; and clinical, scientific, regulatory and technical developments. In light of these risks and uncertainties, and other risks and uncertainties that are described in Pharming's 2019 Annual Report and its report for the six months ended 30 June 2020, the events and circumstances discussed in such forward-looking statements may not occur, and Pharming's actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied thereby. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and are based on information available to Pharming as of the date of this release.

Inside Information

This press release relates to the disclosure of information that qualifies, or may have qualified, as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.

For further public information, contact:

Pharming Group, Leiden, The Netherlands
Sijmen de Vries, CEO: T: +31 71 524 7400
Susanne Embleton, Investor Relations Manager: T: +31 71 524 7400 E: [email protected]

FTI Consulting, London, UK
Victoria Foster Mitchell/Alex Shaw/Mary Whittow
T: +44 203 727 1000

LifeSpring Life Sciences Communication, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Leon Melens
T: +31 6 53 81 64 27 E: [email protected]

PRN NLD