Credit: anyaivanova/Shutterstock.com

Biopharmaceutical company Onconova Therapeutics Inc. announced Monday that it has hired Avi Oler to serve as general counsel and vice president, corporate development.

Oler joins Onconova, based in Newtown, Pennsylvania, after spending most of the past eight years in various roles at Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, most recently as vice president of operations and chief of staff to the CEO, according to his LinkedIn profile.

While at Spectrum, which is headquartered in Henderson, Nevada, Oler was “instrumental in the company's progress and productive licensing activities,” according to Onconova.

Earlier in his career Oler had a stint as an investment banking analyst for Lehman Brothers in London and as a financial research analyst at CFRA Research in New York. He later spent three years as an associate at Kirkland & Ellis, where he practiced corporate law. He is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law. He also has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern and a master of science from The London School of Economics and Political Science, according to his LinkedIn profile. 

At Onconova, Oler will be primarily responsible for business development, investor relations and legal affairs. He'll be focused on forging relationships with global partners to help advance an Onconova cancer drug called Rigosertib. So far, Onconova has partnered with SymBio Pharmaceuticals for Japan and Korea and Pint Pharma in Latin America, according to the company.

Rigosertib, which is used to treat MDS, a blood cancer, is currently in clinical trials, according to Onconova.

Oler said in a statement that he was “honored to join Onconova at such a momentous time, and to showcase Onconova as a partner of choice.” He was not immediately available for an interview.

Onconova CEO Ramesh Kumar described Oler as “an accomplished executive with the skill set and track record that will enable us to achieve our business development goals.”

The company's president, Steven Fruchtman, M.D., added that he'd “seen Avi use his varied talents to bring success and value, and execute impactful transactions in similar roles, and I look forward to his contributions to Onconova.”