CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. and SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Feb. 25, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rivus Pharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to treating MASH, obesity, and associated cardiometabolic diseases, today announced the appointment of Jorge Bartolome as Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board. He succeeds Allen Cunningham, a co-founder who will move to the role of Chief Operating Officer.
Mr. Bartolome has over 25 years of leadership experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. With a proven track record of building high-performing organizations, he brings extensive leadership experience in late-stage clinical development, commercial launch, and sales and marketing. Before joining Rivus, he served as Chief Executive Officer and Director of AreteiaTx and earlier served as President of Janssen Canada (Johnson & Johnson) and held increasingly senior positions over 20 years at GSK.
“Rivus is embarking on an important stage of its journey as the company advances two potentially transformative oral medicines targeting MASH, obesity, and associated cardiometabolic diseases,” said Ian F. Smith, Co-Chair of the Board of Rivus Pharmaceuticals. “Jorge’s extensive pharmaceutical background in late-stage drug development and commercialization makes him the ideal leader for Rivus to navigate the unprecedented opportunity to treat MASH, obesity, and its co-morbidities. It is an exciting time at Rivus, a company on the forefront of the next era for obesity treatments, focused on energy expenditure and preservation of muscle for sustained metabolic health.”
“I am honored to lead this talented team as we drive Rivus forward as a company with multiple oral therapies to address the growing unmet patient needs in MASH, obesity, and associated cardiometabolic diseases,” said Jorge Bartolome, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Rivus Pharmaceuticals. “Rivus has made remarkable progress developing a best-in-class oral mitochondrial uncoupler HU6 through three Phase 2 trials that achieved their primary endpoints and demonstrated a favorable safety and tolerability profile. 2026 will be a pivotal year for Rivus as we advance HU6 in the AMPLIFY Phase 2 trial in MASH and prepare for our first clinical trial for RV-8451, our differentiated oral, muscle-preserving GLP-1, in obesity.”
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c999693b-65d5-4e13-9622-8175bc2f813a
Jorge Bartolome has over 25 years of leadership experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. With a proven track record building high-performing organizations, he brings extensive leadership experience in late-stage clinical development, commercial launch, and sales and marketing. Previously, he served as Chief Executive Officer and Director of AreteiaTx, leading the company through positive Phase 3 trial data for a first-in-class oral therapy for asthma and COPD. Earlier, he served as President of Janssen Canada (Johnson & Johnson) after serving as Vice President, Cardiovascular business in the U.S. Mr. Bartolome began his career at GSK, serving in positions of increasing responsibility for over 20 years across North America, Asia, and Latin America, ultimately serving as Senior Vice President, Business Unit Leader in the U.S. for multiple therapeutic areas generating $8 billion in annual sales. He earned a B.A. in Economics from Duke University.
About Rivus Pharmaceuticals
Rivus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing new oral investigational medicines for MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis), obesity, and associated cardiometabolic diseases. Rivus is developing oral small molecule therapeutics that are designed to increase energy expenditure for sustained, fat-selective, muscle-preserving weight loss. These medicines leverage validated mechanisms, including mitochondrial uncoupling and GLP-1 agonism, to address the limitations of current treatments for these chronic diseases that need new chronic treatment options. Rivus’ lead candidate HU6 is a potential best-in-class oral mitochondrial uncoupler that has demonstrated positive results in three Phase 2 clinical trials. In addition, Rivus has a research and discovery platform and is developing a pipeline of preclinical therapies, including RV-8451, a differentiated oral muscle-preserving GLP-1, for obesity. Follow Rivus on LinkedIn and X and visit www.rivuspharma.com.
