Jean-Paul Kress

Global Life Sciences CEO and Board Member
ex-CEO MorphoSys, Board Member Sanofi

Jean-Paul Kress, M.D., has spent the last 30 years leading transformative change across biotech and pharmaceutical companies, leveraging his experience as a trained physician to create meaningful progress for patients.

Most recently, Jean-Paul served as the CEO of MorphoSys from 2019 until it was acquired in 2024 for 2.7 billion Euros by Novartis. He led the company in its mission – More life for people with cancer – and has spearheaded its strategic and cultural transformation into a global biopharmaceutical company developing and commercializing novel cancer medicines.

Prior to joining MorphoSys, Jean-Paul was the CEO of Syntimmune, where he sharpened the company’s focus on late-stage clinical development in auto-immune diseases, resulting in its acquisition by Alexion. He has held several senior leadership roles at other pharmaceutical companies in the US and in Europe, including Biogen, Sanofi, Gilead and AbbVie.

Jean-Paul is a member of Sanofi’s Board of Directors. Previously, he was the Chair of the Board of Directors at Erytech Pharma and a member of Sarepta Therapeutics’ Board of Directors.

Jean-Paul received his M.D. from Faculté Necker-Enfants Malades in Paris and Master of Sciences in molecular and cellular pharmacology from Ecole normale supérieure (Ulm) in Paris.