Across nearly three decades in the biopharma industry, James Sabry has founded and led a startup, headed up external partnering at a big pharma company and sat on multiple boards. The renowned dealmaker has evaluated hundreds of companies over the years – and says he was drawn to BioMarin because of its unique position in the industry.

“With its focus on genetically defined conditions, its R&D, manufacturing and commercial capabilities, and its size, BioMarin is really kind of a unicorn in the industry right now,” says James, who joined BioMarin as EVP, Chief Business Officer last October. “We’re sitting in this sweet spot that is incredibly exciting and promising.”

We caught up with James to learn more about his decision to join BioMarin and why, in his mind, the qualities that attracted him to the company also make it an enticing business partner to smaller biotechs focused on genetics.

Q: Can you tell us more about what inspired you to take on leading business development at BioMarin?

There are really four things that attracted me to BioMarin. The first is the quality of the science and the scientists. Our scientists have deep expertise in genetics and genomics, and the way they approach their work is just fantastic – they are committed to the scientific method, independent-thinking, always challenging their own hypotheses. That is exquisitely rare in biotech right now, where we see a lot of copycat science.

The second is the quality and power of our manufacturing capabilities, which I think is almost unparalleled for a company of our size. The third is the breadth and maturity of our commercial operations, not just in the U.S. and Europe, but in 80 countries around the world.

If you combine those three with our business model and intense focus on developing medicines to treat genetically defined conditions, BioMarin has a totally unique proposition and this wonderful opportunity for growth.

Q: Can you say more about the opportunity for growth that you see at BioMarin? What makes the company an ideal partner in your mind?

At this moment in time, we have an opportunity to really cement BioMarin as the global leader in treating genetically defined conditions. And the same things that attracted me to BioMarin also make us very attractive to potential partners. There are a fairly large number of smaller private, and some public, companies pursuing the kinds of medicines we are, and those companies see BioMarin as a leader. These companies see our manufacturing and commercial infrastructure and have to consider whether they want to try to build that out themselves, or partner with a company like BioMarin – of which there are fewer and fewer – so that their medicine has the highest chance of making it to patients around the world.

Q: What trends are you seeing across the industry that influence the way you look at business development at BioMarin?

The first is that capital markets continue to be difficult. The amount of private financing available is limited, but the amount of public financing is even more limited. A biotech startup’s standard path of using series A and B funding to generate some early data that enable an IPO isn’t happening as frequently. So that leaves these startups looking to form strategic partnerships and collaborations with larger companies, earlier and more frequently than in the past.

At the same time, there is a lot of pressure on big pharma companies to go after larger patient populations in areas such as obesity. We’re seeing fewer large and mid-size biopharma companies interested in developing medicines for smaller, underserved populations often associated with genetically defined conditions.

The combination of these two trends makes it a perfect time to be at a company like ours, and I think you’ll see us try to be opportunistic in this regard.

Q: What have you been focused on during your first few months at BioMarin?

I’ve been working closely with my colleagues Greg Friberg, our Chief R&D Officer, and Cristin Hubbard, our Chief Commercial Officer, to ensure that our approach to business development, research and development, and commercialization is fully integrated. That starts with putting our internal research pipeline onto the same plane with the external innovation that we may consider trying to acquire. Then together we decide which assets, both internal and external, make the most sense to pursue, aligned with BioMarin’s Core 5 principles for scientific discovery and development.

I’ve been tremendously pleased with how we’re working together so far – there is a connectedness that is truly rare in this industry. I attribute this to our singular focus on genetically defined conditions and to our newly formed, highly focused business units. That’s what really excites me about being here.

Forward-Looking Statements

This interview and Q&A contain forward-looking statements about the business prospects of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BioMarin), including without limitation, statements about: BioMarin’s opportunities to grow, including the ability to cement BioMarin as the global leader in treating genetically defined conditions; BioMarin’s ability to enter into partnerships and collaborations; industry trends and the potential impact to BioMarin; and BioMarin’s ability to integrate business development, research and development, and commercialization. These forward-looking statements are predictions and involve risks and uncertainties such that actual results may differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: BioMarin’s success in the commercialization of its commercial products; impacts of macroeconomic and other external factors on BioMarin’s operations; results and timing of current and planned preclinical studies and clinical trials and the release of data from those trials; BioMarin’s ability to successfully manufacture its commercial products and product candidates; the content and timing of decisions by the Food and Drug Administration, the European Commission and other regulatory authorities concerning each of the described products and product candidates; the market for each of these products; actual sales of BioMarin’s commercial products; and those factors detailed in BioMarin’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the factors contained under the caption “Risk Factors” in BioMarin’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, as such factors may be updated by any subsequent reports. Stockholders are urged not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. BioMarin is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.