ImmunityBio appoints John Brennan and Gen (Ret.) Wesley Clark to its Board of Directors

– USA, CA –  ImmunityBio, Inc., a privately-held immunotherapy company, today announced the appointment of John Brennan, former Central Intelligence Agency Director, and Wesley Clark, retired U.S. Army General, to its board of directors, effective immediately, bringing the Board to four members, including Christobel Selecky, appointed in August 2020, and Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, Chairman and CEO.

“As we expand our activities in today’s dynamic global environment, and make progress toward closing the NantKwest merger, assembling an outstanding Board to help oversee the continued execution of our strategy has been a top priority,” said Chairman and CEO, Dr. Soon-Shiong. “We are excited to welcome John and Wesley to the ImmunityBio Board and look forward to benefiting from their significant international and government experience.”

All directors are expected to serve on the combined board of ImmunityBio and NantKwest (Nasdaq: NK) upon completion of the pending merger previously announced on December 21, 2020. ImmunityBio entered into an agreement to combine in a stock-for-stock transaction with NantKwest to create a leading immunotherapy and cell therapy company focused on oncology and infectious disease. The combination is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

About John Brennan

Mr. Brennan served for 25 years in a variety of roles at the CIA, rising from analyst to station chief, and finally being appointed as the agency’s Director by President Barack Obama. He also served as Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism. Brennan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Fordham University, and is a Distinguished Fellow at the Fordham University Law School. He earned a Master of Arts from the University of Texas at Austin, where he currently serves as a Distinguished Non-Resident Scholar and a senior advisor to the University’s Intelligence Studies Projects.

“I am excited to join ImmunityBio at this important time for the company,” said Mr. Brennan. “ImmunityBio is doing pioneering work across oncology and infectious disease, and is poised to accelerate its progress when it joins together with NantKwest.”

About Gen (Ret.) Wesley Clark

General Clark served for 34 years in the U.S. Army, rising through the ranks to earn his fourth star as a full general in 1996. He served as the Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO where he commanded Operation Allied Force in the Kosovo War. Highly decorated throughout his career, Gen. Clark was awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton.

He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he was class valedictorian. After graduating from West Point, General Clark was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he earned degrees in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. He earned a master’s degree in military science from the Command and General Staff College. General runs Wesley K. Clark and Associates consulting firm and is Chairman and CEO of Enverra, a boutique investment bank.

Mr. Clark commented, “ImmunityBio is a unique company with a promising pipeline and multiple opportunities to deliver breakthrough advances. I am honored to begin working with Patrick and the rest of the Board and management team, leveraging my global expertise as the company enters its next phase.”

About Christobel Selecky

Ms. Selecky is a chief executive, entrepreneur and board member with more than 30 years of healthcare industry experience. Ms. Selecky held several leadership positions over her 14-year career at FHP International Corporation, including as President of the FHP California Health Plan. She subsequently co-founded, and served as President, CEO, and Executive Chairman of LifeMasters Supported SelfCare, a national leader in the field of disease and population health management.

Ms. Selecky serves on corporate and not-for-profit boards of directors and, as a consultant helping improve patient engagement, population health outcomes, and healthcare cost management. In addition to ImmunityBio, she currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Paris-based Teleperformance, Satellite Healthcare, and Griswold Home Care. She is active in several board governance organizations such as NACD and Women Corporate Directors and is also a lecturer in Healthcare Entrepreneurship in the MBA program at the University of California, Irvine.

About ImmunityBio

ImmunityBio, Inc. is a late-clinical-stage immunotherapy company developing next-generation therapies that drive immunogenic mechanisms for defeating cancers and infectious diseases. The company’s immunotherapy platform activates both the innate and adaptive immune systems to create long-term “immunological memory.” This novel approach is designed to eliminate the need for high-dose chemotherapy, improve upon the outcomes of current CAR T-cell therapies, and extend beyond checkpoint inhibitors.

ImmunityBio’s platform is based on the foundation of three separate modalities: antibody cytokine fusion proteins, synthetic immunomodulators, and second-generation human adenovirus vaccine technologies.

Anktiva is a novel interleukin-15 superagonist complex and has received Breakthrough Therapy and Fast Track Designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for BCG-unresponsive CIS non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. The company is also in Phase 2 or 3 trials for indications such as first- and second-line lung cancer, triple-negative breast cancer, metastatic pancreatic cancer, recurrent glioblastoma, and soft tissue sarcoma in combination with the company’s synthetic immune modulator.

ImmunityBio is also developing therapies, including vaccines, for the prevention and treatment of HIV, influenza, and the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 with its second-generation human adenovirus vaccine technologies.

For more information : https://immunitybio.com/

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