Guilford-based health technology startup Butterfly Network Inc. has a new CEO as it prepares to close on a $1.5 billion merger and go public next month.
Butterfly, which is merging with hedge fund-backed Longview Acquisition Corp., has tapped Dr. Todd M. Fruchterman to lead the combined venture effective Feb. 1, the two companies announced Monday.
Founded in 2011 by renowned Connecticut life sciences entrepreneur Jonathan Rothberg, Butterfly is the maker of a portable, pocket-sized ultrasound device. Longview is backed by hedge fund Glenview Capital Markets.
“We are very excited Todd has joined Butterfly as President and CEO to lead the company at this critical stage,” Rothberg said in a statement.
He hailed Fruchterman’s background as a proven business executive at public medical device companies “where he has successfully scaled disruptive technologies.”
Fruchterman spent nearly 10 years at 3M Co., maker of Scotch tape and Post-it notes, where he most recently served as president and general manager of the conglomerate’s medical solutions division.
Previously, he spent five years as executive vice president at medtech firm Kinetic Concepts Inc., and also held key roles at Johnson & Johnson, Schering-Plough and Response Genetics.
He succeeds former Butterfly CEO Laurent Faracci, who stepped down over the weekend, according to the companies. Butterfly had initially said its existing management team would stay on when it announced the merger last November.
“Laurent recognized the value of this transformative combination and was critical in moving the company toward this goal and providing a seamless transition for the next phases of growth,” Rothberg said. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”
The two companies also nominated four new directors to join Rothberg, Fruchterman and Glenview CEO Larry Robbins on the board.
They are: Dawn Carfora, vice president, business and planning operations, global business group at Facebook; John Hammergren, former chairman and CEO of McKesson Corp.; Gianluca Pettiti, senior vice president and president of specialty diagnostics at Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., and S. Louise Phanstiel, chair of the board of directors at Myriad Genetics.
Pending stockholder approval and other closing conditions, the newly combined company is expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Feb. 16 under the ticker “BFLY.”
Butterfly is one of seven companies based out of Rothberg’s 4Catalyzer life sciences incubator in Guilford.
Contact Natalie Missakian at news@newhavenbiz.com
