23 October 2019 - - US-based biotechnology company Revance Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: RVNC) has appointed Mark Foley as president and CEO, replacing Dan Browne, who has stepped down due to a misjudgment in handling an employee matter, the company said.

Browne has also resigned from Revance's board of directors.

Foley assumes the president and CEO role after serving on the Revance Board for the past two years. He brings more than 25 years of operational and investment experience in the healthcare arena.

Previously, Foley served as chairman, president and CEO of ZELTIQ Aesthetics from 2012 to 2017, where he led the company through a period of significant transformation and growth, culminating in its acquisition by Allergan.

The change in leadership is unrelated to Revance's operational performance, which continues to be strong. The company remains on track to file its Biologics Licensing Application submission for DaxibotulinumtoxinA for Injection for the treatment of glabellar (frown) lines in the Fall of 2019, as previously announced.

Foley was previously chairman, president and CEO of Zeltiq Aesthetics.

During his tenure, he led Zeltiq's growth from USD 68m in annual revenue in 2012 to over USD 350m in 2016, resulting in a greater than tenfold appreciation of the company's stock.

Foley also served as a Managing director of RWI Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on life sciences, networking, semiconductor and software investments from 2004 to 2018.

Prior to this, Foley held a variety of senior operating roles in large public companies and venture-backed startups, including US Surgical Corp., Guidant Corp., Devices for Vascular Intervention (acquired by Eli Lilly), Perclose (acquired by Abbott) and Ventrica (acquired by Medtronic), where he was the founder and CEO.

He currently serves on the board of directors for public companies Glaukos and SI-Bone and is a co-chair of the Aesthetics Innovation Summit. Foley is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame.

Revance Therapeutics is a Silicon Valley-based biotechnology company, pioneering new innovations in neuromodulators for aesthetic and therapeutic indications.

Revance's lead product candidate, DaxibotulinumtoxinA for Injection, combines a proprietary stabilising peptide excipient with a highly purified botulinum toxin that does not contain human or animal-based components.

The company has successfully completed a Phase 3 program for DAXI in glabellar (frown) lines, delivering unprecedented efficacy and long-lasting duration of effect, and is pursuing US regulatory approval in 2020.

Revance is also evaluating DAXI in forehead lines and lateral canthal lines (crow's feet), as well as in three therapeutic indications - cervical dystonia, adult upper limb spasticity and plantar fasciitis, with plans to study migraine.

Beyond DAXI, Revance has begun development of a biosimilar to Botox, which would compete in the existing short-acting neuromodulator marketplace. Revance is dedicated to making a difference by transforming patient experiences.