BAAR, SWITZERLAND -- CorFlow Therapeutics AG (CorFlow) announced the appointment of Chris O’Connell as Chairman of the Board of Directors, replacing Rick Geoffrion who remains as a Director on the Board. Chris is a highly regarded senior executive, board member and advisor across the medical devices, life sciences and global healthcare industries. Chris built his career over 21 years at Medtronic (MDT) serving in multiple business areas and functions during an era of rapid expansion. This included senior leadership roles in the Cardiovascular and Diabetes business units, before becoming Executive Vice President and President of the Restorative Therapies Group. Chris was a member of the Medtronic Executive Committee for nine years. Chris later became CEO and President of the Waters Corporation (WAT) which he led to robust business and share price growth for over five years. He currently serves as an Independent Director of innovative growth companies in medical devices, life sciences and diagnostics, as well as several non-profit organizations.

Paul Mead, CEO of CorFlow, said “Chris brings exceptional strategic and operational acumen to CorFlow at a pivotal growth phase, where the company can benefit tremendously from his experience. Chris knows exactly how high the bar is set for excellence across all functions in MedTech, both from his corporate and board experiences, and from having been on the buy side of many M&A transactions. On behalf of our board, shareholders, and employees, we’re thrilled to have him on board.”

Paul added, “I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude for the personal support and commitment from Rick Geoffrion over the past few years, who I am glad will remain on our Board in an independent capacity.”

Chris joins CorFlow as the company embarks on achieving ambitious Series B objectives, which include two parallel clinical trials, an FDA IDE trial to obtain marketing authorization in the United States, and a landmark randomized therapy trial in Europe. CorFlow’s technology aims to be the first to both diagnose and deliver therapy for heart attack patients suffering from microvascular obstruction, with a precise system that fits into the existing workflow for interventional cardiologists. The company’s first in human MOCA I study results have been presented at the recent TCT and EuroPCR scientific congresses, and preclinical findings at the European Society of Cardiology meeting. CorFlow closed a €44M Series B in late 2024 with an international venture capital syndicate, and recently added further capital for expanded clinical, R&D, and capability advancement.

Chris commented, “I am honored to join the CorFlow team, and highly motivated by the opportunity to help address a major unmet medical need for patients suffering from microvascular obstruction. CorFlow is poised for breakthrough success with such a transformative technology set, talented CEO and team, and experienced investor group. We have all the ingredients to achieve something special.”

About CorFlow Therapeutics: Headquartered in Baar, Switzerland. CorFlow aspires to be the leader in diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for restoring healthy microvascular blood flow anywhere in the human body where a critical need exists. Working in close partnership with scientists from the University of Bern, ETH Zurich and the University Hospital Zurich, in a collaboration funded by the Swiss Innovation Agency (Innosuisse), CorFlow continues to explore applications in and beyond the heart.