MiRagen rebrands to Viridian months after acquisition, names new CEO

BOULDER — Biopharmaceutical maker miRagen Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: MGEN) has made its biggest moves yet after a tumultuous several months, saying it will rebrand to the name of a company it acquired in October and tap a new CEO.

In a statement Tuesday morning, the Boulder company said it will rename itself as Viridian Therapeutics and change its stock symbol on the Nasdaq to VRDN, effective Wednesday morning.

Miragen acquired Viridian in the fall for an undisclosed amount as part of a pivot of its clinical focus from treating lymphoma and other cancers to treating eye problems caused by overactive thyroid glands.

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Jonathan Violin, who was the standalone Viridian’s co-founder, will become the new company’s CEO after originally joining Miragen as chief operating officer at the close of the deal.

Violin is the third new chief executive for the company in the span of four months. Miragen’s co-founder and first CEO, Bill Marshall, stepped down last September as the company embarked on the reshuffle. He was replaced by former COO Lee Rauch, another hire from the company last summer.

Rauch will remain with the company as a strategic adviser.

“The leadership team changes and Viridian Therapeutics name reflect the continuing evolution of the company and our patient-centric model of innovation,” Violin said in a statement.

The company is also naming Dr. Barrett Katz as its chief medical officer. Katz was previously president and CMO of eye-disease treatment developer BridgeBio Pharma Inc.

Miragen’s stock rose 2.04% in early trading Tuesday to $23.50 per share as of 11 a.m. Mountain Time, with little change in volume.

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