John Butler
President and Chief Executive Officer
Small Molecules
Akebia Therapeutics
United States of America
Biography
John P. Butler joined Akebia as a director in July 2013 and was appointed as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Akebia in August 2013. Prior to joining Akebia, from 2011 until 2013, Mr. Butler served as the Chief Executive Officer of Inspiration Biopharmaceuticals, Inc (“Inspiration”), a company focused on developing products for patients with hemophilia. Mr. Butler led the transactions that resulted in the sale of Inspiration’s hemophilia assets to Cangene Corporation and Baxter International in early 2013, for a total aggregate consideration that could exceed $1 billion. From 1997 to 2011, Mr. Butler held various positions at Genzyme Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, most recently serving as President of the company’s rare genetic diseases business. From 2002 until 2010, Mr. Butler led Genzyme’s renal division. Prior to his work at Genzyme, Mr. Butler held sales and marketing positions at Amgen and Hoffmann-La Roche. Mr. Butler currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the American Kidney Fund. Mr. Butler received a BA in Chemistry from Manhattan College and an MBA from Baruch College, City University of New York.
Research Interest
Advancing care for serious diseases, to commercialize products for patients with kidney disease, hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) biology
