Axcelead Drug Discovery Partners (hereinafter “Axcelead DDP”), announced that it has decided to make the following changes to its President & CEO effective May 1, 2023.

1 . Details of Changes in Positions (as of May 1, 2023)

Name	Current Position	New Position
Yoshinori Ikeura	President & CEO	Chairperson, Member of the Board
Nobuhiko Yamada	COO	President & CEO

2 . Reason for change
This is due to the appointment of Yoshinori Ikeura, President and CEO of Axcelead DDP to the position of President and CEO of Axcelead, Inc., the parent company of Axcelead DDP. Nobuhiko Yamada will continue to serve in his current position as COO after May 1 of this year.

3 . Brief history of the new CEO
Nobuhiko Yamada joined Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited in 1986 after graduating from university, where he was assigned to the domestic sales department and the company-wide business controller in the process of globalization for 10 years. He was in charge of Vice President of Sales Planning & Controlling Department, Pharmaceutical Sales Division from 2013, and he was engaged in the reorganization of the R&D department as Japan Head of the R&D Transformation Office from 2015.
In 2017, he and Yoshinori Ikeura launched the predecessor of Axcelead DDP, and caused Drug Discovery Gateway Investment Limited Partnership, of which Whiz Partner is General Partner, to spin off Axcelead DDP. In December 2018, he was transferred to Axcelead DDP and assumed COO. Axcelead DDP is working to establish a solid management foundation by spreading excellent drug discovery technology to a wide range of customers.

Press Release by Axcelead DDP