• US economic strategist and hedge fund manager Ronen Israel appointed Board Director, deepening North American investment connectivity
• Amrik Shah, ScD, joins as Chief Biometrics Officer, enhancing prowess in clinical trial design, statistical analysis and US and European regulatory interactions

LONDON, May 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Yaqrit, a late clinical-stage company developing life-saving treatments for advanced liver diseases, announced today the appointment of healthcare innovator and hedge fund strategist Ronen Israel to its management board. With a background in economics/finance and biomedical science, Ronen is a founder of disruptive oncology company BioConvergent Health and was a quantitative hedge fund manager for over twenty-five years. Separately, Yaqrit has appointed liver disease specialist Amrik Shah as Chief Biometrics Officer.

“Ronen brings a wealth of diverse financial and US investment experience to Yaqrit, at a time when the company’s financial potential continues to track clinical endeavors and ambitions,” said Troels Jordansen, Yaqrit’s Chief Executive Officer. “His track record in financial management and reach across the biomedical sphere serve as invaluable assets as Yaqrit moves its drugs and devices in late-stage clinical development.”

Ronen Israel was with AQR Capital Management for 22 years until 2021, where he was a Principal, senior portfolio manager, and member of the firm’s Executive Committee. In 2021, he co-founded BioConvergent Health aiming to combine innovative drug and device approaches in the treatment of cancer. He has published and taught extensively on finance and investing, specializing in portfolio management and hedge fund strategies. He holds dual degrees in Economics and Biomedical Science from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Masters in Mathematics from Columbia University.

Yaqrit has also appointed Amrik Shah as Chief Biometrics Officer. Amrik is a highly experienced biostatistician with 20+ years of experience in strategic design and analysis of clinical trials. His pharma background (Schering-Plough/Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Biogen, Shionogi and Intercept Pharma) encompasses trial design and statistical guidance in cardiovascular disease, anti-infectives, neuroscience and non-viral liver disease. Recently, Amrik has advised multiple biotech companies on drug development strategy, clinical endpoints and regulatory interactions with the FDA and EMA, particularly in the liver diseases space including MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis), ACLF (acute-on-chronic liver failure), and hepatitis B. He holds an ScD degree in Biostatistics from Harvard University.

“Amrik’s experience will further enhance the clinical precision with which Yaqrit is able to approach its markets,” said Professor Rajiv Jalan, Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Yaqrit. “A highly innovative portfolio in a poorly served disease area still requires agile alignment with regulatory expectation.”

Ronen Israel and Amrik Shah join an expanded international leadership group at Yaqrit preparing to implement funding streams and build pharmaceutical partnerships to propel the company’s drug products including YAQ006 (IV OPA) and YAQ007 (oral OPA) through advanced clinical trials.

Contact Company

Troels Jordansen

Email: Troels@Yaqrit.com

Tel: +31 6 1834 5326

Contact Investors
Mary-Ann Chang

Email: Mary-Ann@Yaqrit.com

Tel: +44 7483 284 853

About Yaqrit

Yaqrit is a clinical-stage company discovering and developing innovative treatments for patients with advanced liver disease at high risk of hospitalization and death. Yaqrit’s pipeline includes three novel therapeutics at phase 2-3 of development and two medical devices providing acute and chronic treatments for advanced cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure where there is an urgent need for more effective treatments. More information is available at www.Yaqrit.com