Spero Therapeutics, Inc. announced the appointment of Esther Rajavelu as Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Rajavelu will succeed Stephen DiPalma, Steve who has served as the company?s Interim CFO since August 1, 2023. Ms. Rajavelu brings to Spero Therapeutics more than two decades of life sciences sector experience combining equities research, investment banking, strategy consulting, and most recently CFO operating experience.

She has deep expertise in strategy, investor relations, financing, and M&A in the pharmaceuticals and biotechnology sectors. Most recently, serving as the CFO at Fulcrum Therapeutics, she led equity financings, and developed and executed a strategic plan to realign internal investments and operations to prioritize capital deployment towards key near-term value drivers and extend cash runway. Prior to her transition as a biotech operating executive, Ms. Rajavelu had a successful career on Wall Street, serving as a Senior Equities Research Analyst covering SMID-cap biotechnology companies at UBS, Oppenheimer, and Deutsche Bank.

Prior to her career in sell-side equities research, she spent several years as a healthcare investment banker at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and EY Capital Advisors executing on M&A and financing transactions. Prior to investment banking, Ms. Rajavelu was a strategy consultant at Towers Perrin focused on U.S. large pharmaceutical companies. The breadth of her company experiences includes Fortune 500, mid-cap companies, and startups in the life sciences sector.

Ms. Rajavelu holds an MBA in Finance and Health Care Management from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA from Wesleyan University. Spero?s Interim CFO, Steve DiPalma, will continue to serve in his capacity as Principal Financial Officer through the filing of the Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. Ms. Rajavelu will formally assume the role of Principal Financial Officer on the day after the filing of such Form 10-Q.