TAMPA, FLA (March 31, 2016)—Phoinix Holding, LLC, a University of South Florida spin-out company that, earlier this year, announced a partnership with the University of South Florida and the discovery of organic compounds to improve heart health and small vessel disease, has appointed Jeffrey Kraws as CEO and Mike Sperduti as President. Mr. Kraws and Mr. Sperduti will lead the company to commercialize a variety of new products focused on the nutraceutical, food, beverage, wound care, medical device, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and animal industries. The company’s compounds have been scientifically proven to induce relaxation in blood vessels. Akin to other compounds on the market, Phoinix is developing products with unique biological effects.
“This is the perfect time for Jeff and Mike to become the leaders of Phoinix. We have a game-changing technology, an incredible research team, and now executive leadership that puts our company in a very strong position,” said Matt Nickerson, cofounder of Phoinix.
“These gentlemen are highly accomplished veterans in their fields whose combined knowledge and business acumen will be invaluable to the company and its shareholders,” added J.R. Huddleston, also a cofounder.
Mr. Kraws has significant experience in analyzing and helping build businesses, which brings a unique perspective to Phoinix. This experience, combined with his ability to understand both the product marketplace as well, which is necessary to navigate the capital markets, is a very valuable skill set for Phoinix as it accelerates its growth. Mr. Kraws is well recognized on Wall Street, having won several prestigious awards for analysis, including being ranked among the Top Ten Analysts for pharmaceutical stock performance in the world many times during his two-plus decades on Wall Street, ranked as the Number One Stock Picker in the world for pharmaceuticals by Starmine, for estimates by Zacks and he is 5-Star-ranked for top biotechnology stock performance by Starmine. He is currently an advisor to nine funds with over $19 billion under management, Chairman of the Board for a NYSE-listed company and partner at Crystal Research Associates, LLC, a leader in independent research on Wall Street.
“This is a very exciting technology and a significant opportunity to do something to help mankind. I believe in our strong science platform and technology being developed with our partners at USF, and look forward to helping advance it into the marketplace,” said Mr. Kraws. He further remarked, “having a platform where the scientists are committed to making a positive impact on the lives of humans and animals was very appealing to me.”
Mr. Sperduti is an accomplished entrepreneur and is internationally recognized as a health care/life science sales expert, having successfully launched hundreds of new technologies worldwide for GE Healthcare, Covidien, Beckman Coulter, Hitachi, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Becton Dickinson and many other fast-growing small companies.
“I joined Phoinix because I wanted to be a part of a company where I believe the possibilities are limitless. Today, with the validation of this technology from the University of South Florida and Mr. Kraws, I am convinced that Phoinix is that company,” Mr. Sperduti said. He added “the opportunity that lies ahead for Phoinix is enormous and the ability to lead with Jeff and work with such talented people is deeply humbling and incredibly exciting.”
Phoinix Holding, LLC is a University of South Florida spin-out company, a member of the Tampa Bay Technology Incubator (TBTI) and part of USF Connect. The company commercializes patented breakthrough health care/life science technologies developed by USF research scientists that make life easier and better for all living things.
Visit poinix.co for more information.
