Yariv Hefez

I’ve spent 15 years building and growing biopharma businesses at Merck KGaA, most recently as head of its global oncology franchise. There I took the P&L from €1.4B to over €2B at its 2024 peak, leading around 40 senior leaders and co-chairing the decisions on which assets to fund, partner or stop. I turned ERBITUX back to growth years after it lost European exclusivity, and by 2025 it was Merck’s best-selling healthcare product at €1.18B. I also initiated and co-led the $3.4B acquisition of SpringWorks Therapeutics. Earlier, I was employee #1 of Merck’s internal biosimilars venture and helped build it into an eight-program business that Fresenius Kabi later acquired for €656m . I started out as a commercial litigator and co-founded a boutique law firm, where I ran the business side as COO, before an MBA at IMD brought me into pharma dealmaking. That mix still shapes how I work. I’ve negotiated licensing deals and partnerships across the US, Europe, China, Japan, Korea, India and Brazil, and evaluated hundreds of companies and assets for strategic fit and commercial potential. If you’re a founder preparing for a partnering or exit conversation with big pharma, an investor testing the commercial case behind an asset, or a leader trying to revive an underperforming product, I’ll tell you plainly where the plan holds up and where it doesn’t.