Stelis CEO steps down after Indian firm signs deal for Russia vaccine

The chief executive officer of Stelis Biopharma Pvt Ltd. stepped down from the Indian pharmaceutical firm barely a year after taking the helm, and days after the company announced a deal to manufacturer at least 200 million doses of Russia’s coronavirus vaccine.

Roger Lias, who accepted the CEO job at unlisted Stelis in late 2019 when the pandemic was in its early stages, left on March 31, according to an automated out-of-office email Bloomberg News received from his account.

“I continue to support the company,” he said, according to the email.

Stelis and its majority owner Strides Pharma Science Ltd. -- both headquartered