TORONTO, January 17, 2019 --  PRESS RELEASE -- The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. has announced the appointment of Dr. Rav Kumar, PhD, as the company’s chief science officer.

Kumar will lead The Green Organic Dutchman’s Science & Innovation Division and oversee all aspects of science-related initiatives including TGOD’s science portfolio encompassing advanced and innovative global product lines for patients and consumers. Kumar will help drive innovation from concept to commercialization at the company.

With over 25-plus years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry, Kumar is a seasoned senior executive with international experience in Europe, Asia and North America. His career has focused on discovery, formulation development, clinical, regulatory, manufacturing, quality and compliance, and business development. Additionally, he has created several multi-million-dollar industry-academic partnerships and received the 2014 Award for Leadership in Canadian Pharmaceutical Sciences.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Dr. Kumar to TGOD. He is a proven and seasoned senior executive with extensive international pharmaceutical experience in developing innovative and novel products with some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies,” stated Brian Athaide, CEO and director of TGOD. “We believe Dr. Kumar, combined with our recent additions of Dr. MacCallum and Jacques Dessureault, establishes a strong foundation for our science and medical team and will provide leadership in global organic cannabis to drive premium innovative solutions for both patients and consumers."

Previously, Kumar held various senior leadership roles with GlaxoSmithKline with assignments in the UK, France and Canada, spanning 25 years. His positions included vice president of R&D operations and business development & classic brands. GSK is one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies and has a market capitalization of CAD $129 billion. Kumar was involved in the development of numerous global new chemical entities, vaccines and new products at GSK. Further, Kumar played a pivotal role in building GSK’s research and development capability in Canada. Additionally, he conceived and executed a $150M spin-out of GSK’s Vaccines R&D Unit to create Neomed Biologics and Vaccines Centre of Excellence in Montreal.

Prior to joining TGOD, Kumar was managing director of Apotex India, Apotex’s largest investment outside of Canada and included pharmaceutical R&D and manufacturing. He was instrumental in establishing “Apotex Global Business Services” in Mumbai, providing medical, scientific and commercial services to Apotex globally. Kumar was instrumental in building out a new leadership team, business processes in addition to strengthening alignment and relationships with Apotex global operations. Apotex is Canada’s largest private pharmaceutical company with global annual sales of several billion dollars.

Kumar’s notable volunteer and board experience includes president of Canadian Society for Pharmaceutical Sciences, board member of CQDM – Pharmaceutical Consortium for Drug Discovery Platforms, National Steering Committee for Patient-Oriented Research (Canadian Institute of Health Research - CIHR) among others.

He holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Bath, UK and a Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honors) from the University of Cardiff, UK.

TORONTO, Jan. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE -- Canopy Rivers Inc. has announced that Narbe Alexandrian has been appointed as president of the company, effective immediately. In this role, Narbe will lead the corporate development initiatives as well as manage the day-to-day business of the company. He will report directly to Bruce Linton, chief executive officer.

“I believe that the team at Canopy Rivers has developed one of the most attractive and compelling platforms in the cannabis industry today,” said Alexandrian. “With our access to deal flow, our management and advisory team of specialists and industry thought leaders, all supplemented with strategic support and insight from the industry’s global leader, Canopy Rivers has built the ideal structure to attack the market, identify best-of-breed companies and operators, and support them both financially and operationally. I’m humbled by the appointment, optimistic about our prospects and excited to continue building on what I believe is the most exciting opportunity of our lifetime.”

Prior to joining Canopy Rivers, Narbe was a venture capitalist at OMERS Ventures, where he sourced and lead private debt and equity investments, helped raise over half a billion dollars of capital for deployment in several of the firm’s investment funds, and acted as a board observer for several of the firm’s portfolio companies. Prior to OMERS Ventures, Narbe was a senior strategy manager for TELUS’s Internet of Things Group, where he helped develop and launch operational and go-to-market strategies in collaboration with TELUS’s executive leadership team. Narbe has also held roles at Firmex Inc. in corporate development and Deloitte LLP in both financial advisory and consulting.

“Narbe has the aptitude, ambition, career pedigree and professional relationship network that make him ideal for this leadership position at Canopy Rivers. Since joining the company, he has been critical in developing organizational structures suitable for a platform of this nature, has helped recruit specialized internal resources, and has worked with the team in developing a more formalized and thesis-driven approach to building our ecosystem of complementary cannabis businesses,” saidLinton. “Narbe will continue to lead the business development functions of Canopy Rivers while also managing the day-to-day operations of the company. I will remain actively involved as chief executive and will continue to delegate responsibilities, supplement global marketing and lead generation initiatives, and facilitate an active and collaborative relationship with the team and Canopy Growth. I would like to congratulate Narbe on this new and exciting opportunity, and I look forward to working with him and the team to continue building value for all Canopy Rivers shareholders,” continued Linton.

In connection with his appointment, Canopy Rivers has granted Narbe incentive stock options to purchase up to 400,000 subordinate voting shares in the capital of the Company. Each option will be exercisable to acquire one subordinate voting share of Canopy Rivers at an exercise price of $4.35 and will expire on the date that is five years from the date of grant. The options granted are subject to applicable hold and vesting periods.