VLN Velan Inc

• Mr. Bruno Carbonaro resigns as President, CEO and director
• Mr. Rishi Sharma is promoted to Chief Financial and Administrative Officer

MONTREAL, Oct. 11, 2023 /CNW/ - Velan Inc. ("Velan") (TSX: VLN) today announces that its board of directors has appointed Mr. James Mannebach, Chair of the Board of Directors of Velan, as interim CEO of Velan. This appointment follows the decision from Mr. Bruno Carbonaro to resign from his positions of President, CEO and director of Velan, effective as of October 10, 2023.

Mr. Rishi Sharma has also been promoted to Chief Financial and Administrative Officer, to oversee all of Velan's administrative functions in addition to his oversight of the financial team.

"I am honoured to be appointed as the interim CEO of Velan and by the support of the Velan Board and the Velan family. I am confident that there will be a seamless transition. I have been working with Velan since 2018 and, over the last years, as the Chair of its Board of Directors, I have met regularly with Velan's management team and its employees. I have confidence in our team and I am looking forward to contributing to the next chapter of Velan's story." said Mr. James Mannebach.

"We congratulate Jim Mannebach and Rishi Sharma on their new appointments," commented Mr. Tom Velan, Chairman of Velan Holding Co. Ltd., the controlling shareholder of Velan. "We are supportive of Jim Mannebach taking on the position of interim CEO in addition to his responsibilities as Chair."

Mr. Mannebach has been a director of Velan since 2018 and the Chair of the board of directors of Velan since 2020. Mr. Mannebach, BSBA, MBA, CPA, is CEO of Power-Sonic Corporation, a leading global provider of power supply and energy storage solutions and Managing Partner of Blackbird Group LLC, a private equity investment and management firm. Prior to March 2009, he was Group President and CEO of IMI PLC's Precision Engineering business, a global engineering firm focused on motion and fluid control technologies. Prior to September 2004, Mr. Mannebach was Group Vice President of the Industrial Technology group of Roper Technologies, a leading global provider of process control, fluid metering and pump systems. Prior to 2003, Mr. Mannebach was employed by Emerson where he served as a Corporate Officer and in the company's process control business group which focuses on process management, control valves, fluid metering and control solutions including senior leadership positions at Fisher Controls, Rosemont and Micro Motion. Prior to 1988, Mr. Mannebach started his professional career at the global accounting, tax and advisory firm of Deloitte. As Managing Partner of Blackbird, Mr. Mannebach serves on the board of directors of Power-Sonic Corporation.

Mr. Rishi Sharma has been the Chief Financial Officer of Velan since May 2022. Before that, Rishi Sharma began his career at Deloitte & Touche in 2005 and progressed to lead finance departments in the aerospace and rail manufacturing industry through senior roles across Alstom SA and Bombardier since 2008. Rishi is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and has a bachelor's degree in commerce with a Major in Accounting and Minor in Corporate Finance from the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University. He also holds a Graduate Diploma in Chartered Accountancy from the John Molson School of Business.

Founded in Montreal in 1950, Velan Inc. is one of the world's leading manufacturers of industrial valves. Velan Inc. is a family-controlled public company, employing approximately 1,650 people with manufacturing facilities in 9 countries. Velan Inc. is a public company with its shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol VLN.

Certain statements made in this news release may constitute forward-looking information or forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including, but not limited to, statements with respect to the future plans of Velan and other statements that are not material facts. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "expect", "believe", "estimate", "plan", "could", "should", "would", "outlook", "forecast", "anticipate", "foresee", "continue" or the negative of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology.

The forward-looking statements included in this news release are based on our current expectations, projections, estimates and assumptions. These statements are only predictions, not guarantees. Such forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. These risks and uncertainties are disclosed in the Company's filings with the appropriate securities commissions. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release. All forward-looking statements included in this news release are based on information available to us on the date hereof, and we assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.

SOURCE Velan Inc.