A constructing on the campus on the world headquarters of Illumina is shown in San Diego, California, Sept. 1, 2021.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Illumina‘s board on Tuesday named Jacob Thaysen because the DNA sequencing company’s latest CEO because it tries to rebound from a grinding dispute over its acquisition of cancer test developer Grail.
Thaysen, a 48-year-old longtime executive at medical devices firm Agilent, will step in as CEO on Sept. 25. His nomination comes months after a bitter proxy fight with activist investor Carl Icahn ended with Illumina’s former CEO, Francis deSouza, resigning despite securing enough votes to remain.Â
Illumina closed its $7.1 billion acquisition of Grail in 2021 without first securing approval from antitrust regulators within the U.S. and European Union — a call that prompted Icahn to hunt board seats and push the businesses to unwind the deal.Â
Shares of Illumina fell greater than 4% on Tuesday after the announcement.Â
Latest leadership could help Illumina regain its footing after a rocky past two years. The corporate’s market value has fallen to roughly $25 billion from around $75 billion in August 2021, the month it closed its acquisition of Grail.Â
Jacob Thaysen
Source: Illumina
Thaysen will step in as Illumina fights two orders in search of to dam the Grail acquisition: One from the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, and one other from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.Â
Illumina has appealed each orders and expects final decisions in late 2023 or early 2024.Â
Thaysen will join Illumina after an almost 10-year tenure at Agilent. He led the analytical instruments division of Agilent since 2018, and served as president of the corporate’s diagnostics and genomics department from 2014 to 2018.Â
He nearly doubled that division’s operating profit during those 4 years, in response to a press release from Illumina.Â
“Jacob’s unique combination of deep technological and industrial experience might be an excellent addition to Illumina,” Stephen MacMillan, the chair of Illumina’s board, said in the discharge. “He brings a fresh perspective, a demonstrated track record driving profitable growth, and a powerful commitment to create value for all of Illumina’s stakeholders.”
Thaysen will take over for Charles Dadswell, who has been serving as Illumina’s interim CEO since June. Dadswell will resume his role as senior vice chairman and general counsel at Illumina.
