Zealand Pharma A/S, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative peptide-based medicines, has appointed Utpal Singh as Chief Scientific Officer. Singh will join the executive team to lead discovery research and translational sciences at Zealand Pharma.

Singh brings nearly 25 years of pharmaceutical industry experience spanning the full drug discovery and development lifecycle. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President of Small Molecule Discovery at Eli Lilly and Company, where he led the transformation of the discovery engine by building new capabilities and strategic partnerships to advance a focused portfolio. 

Singh began his pharmaceutical career in 2001 with Merck & Co. following completion of a postdoctoral fellowship in organic chemistry. 

“We are committed to expanding our world-leading peptide discovery engine to support the next wave of innovation at Zealand – and Utpal’s appointment further strengthens our foundation for growth,” said Adam Steensberg, CEO, Zealand Pharma. “His leadership in design and discovery of life-changing medicines will be instrumental in our mission to develop enduring therapies for patients.”

Sing commented, “The recent advances in data science and machine learning integrated with Zealand Pharma’s exceptional peptide discovery and translational expertise can create a powerful engine for drug discovery… It’s a great time to invest in discovery research, and I’m eager to collaborate with this world-class team to develop medicines that could reshape the future of obesity and more.”