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Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On April 22, 2026, the board of directors of Barinthus Biotherapeutics plc (the “Company”) appointed Douglas Swirsky as Chief Financial Officer and principal accounting officer of the Company, effective as of May 1, 2026 (the “Appointment”).
Douglas Swirsky, age 56, has over 25 years of experience in a wide range of industries. Mr. Swirsky served as Chief Financial Officer of MaxCyte, Inc. from March 2023 to March 2026 and currently is a Senior Advisor to MaxCyte’s Chief Executive Officer. Prior to that, Mr. Swirsky served as Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of AavantiBio, Inc. from February 2021 until its acquisition by Solid Biosciences, Inc. in December 2022. Before that, Mr. Swirsky served as President, Chief Executive Officer and a director of Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from November 2018 until November 2020. Mr. Swirsky currently serves as chairman of the board of directors of Cellectar Biosciences, Inc. Previously, he also served on the board of directors of NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Mr. Swirsky is a certified public accountant in the state of Maryland and a CFA charterholder. He received his B.S. in Business Administration from Boston University and his M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
In connection with the Appointment, the Company entered into a master services agreement (the “MSA”) with Grand Strand BioAdvisors LLC, pursuant to which Mr. Swirsky, as a Managing Member of Grand Strand BioAdvisors LLC, will provide services to the Company as Chief Financial Officer and principal accounting officer. Pursuant to the MSA, the Company shall pay Mr. Swirsky a fee of $20,000 per month in accordance with the terms of the MSA. The MSA also provides that the Company will maintain directors’ and officers’ liability insurance covering Mr. Swirsky in his capacity as an officer on terms no less favorable than those provided to other officers of the Company and will indemnify and hold harmless Mr. Swirsky against certain liabilities arising out of the performance of services, subject to customary exceptions.
No family relationships exist between Mr. Swirsky and any of the Company’s directors or executive officers. There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Swirsky and any other person pursuant to which Mr. Swirsky was selected as the Chief Financial Officer and the principal accounting officer, nor are there any transactions to which the Company is or was a participant in which Mr. Swirsky has a material interest subject to disclosure pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Barinthus Biotherapeutics plc | ||
| Date: April 22, 2026 | By: | /s/ William Enright |
| William Enright | ||
| Chief Executive Officer | ||