In a surprising move, Ocuphire Pharma fired its cofounder and CEO Mina Sooch Friday morning.

Sooch cofounded the clinical-stage ophthalmic biopharma focused on developing and commercializing small-molecule therapies for treating eye disorders in 2018. 

A company press release didn’t indicate why Sooch was let go but Endpoints Report said that she said she wasn’t given any cause for her termination.

To replace Sooch, Ocuphire is turning to industry veteran Rick Rodgers, who has served as chair of the audit committee on the company’s board of directors since 2020.

Rodgers was a co-founder of Tesaro, a biopharma which was acquired by GSK in 2018. Prior to that, he was an executive at Abraxis BioScience, which was acquired by Celgene, as well as at MGI Pharma, which was acquired by Eisai. 

“I am honored to serve as Interim CEO of Ocuphire at this critical juncture in the company’s maturation. I look forward to working closely with the management team to seamlessly execute our near-term priorities,” Rodgers said in a statement. 

Additionally, the company has retained an executive search firm to assist in identifying a permanent CEO.

Cam Gallagher, chairman of the board of directors at Ocuphire, said the company is at an “exciting point in its evolution” and is eager to have Rodgers serve as its interim leader.

“Rick’s experienced leadership at late-stage biopharmaceutical companies will be invaluable as we execute our strategy, which is now primarily focused on advancing APX3330 into Phase 3 for diabetic retinopathy and securing regulatory approvals for Nyxol across three indications,” Gallagher said in a statement. “Rick has a proven track record in creating value and we look forward to his contributions during this leadership transition at Ocuphire.”

The switch at CEO came less than a month after Ocuphire released its most recent earnings report, highlighted by cash and cash equivalents of $42.6 million, which the company said was enough to fund operations into 2025. In a release accompanying the report, Sooch said the company’s lead efforts surrounding Nyxol and APX330 were poised for “potential late-stage clinical, regulatory, and product approval catalysts” this year.