Ex-banker Aditya Puri joins as advisor to pharma major Strides

Former HDFC Bank's Managing Director Aditya Puri has joined pharma major Strides Group as an advisor and will also serve as a director of its associate company Stelis Biopharma.

Strides said his appointment to the Stelis board comes at an exciting juncture for the company as it transitions from incubation phase to a consolidation and growth phase to establish itself as a partner of choice globally with the aim of bringing world-class treatments at affordable costs to patients in both emerging and developed markets.

"With Stelis poised for its next leg of growth, this is the right time to expand the board and ensure robust guidance and governance by the best possible industry minds. I look forward to working with Puri and leveraging his expertise to take Stelis to new heights," said Arun Kumar, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Strides.

Puri said he looks forward to working building world-class institutions to produce high-quality affordable biotherapeutics, and contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) services including those needed to combat the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

"The group's established parentage, global success and headstart in terms of basic infrastructure, gives me the opportunity to be involved in and guide Stelis and other group endeavours in their exciting growth story," he added.

Puri, who led HDFC Bank since its inception over 25 years ago, retired in October last year after a successful career which made the bank the largest among private sector lenders.

Strides' global manufacturing sites are located in India (Chennai, Puducherry and two locations in Bengaluru), Singapore, Italy (Milan), Kenya (Nairobi) and the United States (Florida).

( With inputs from ANI )