X4 Pharmaceuticals is again shrinking its workforce, this time by 50% as the company pushes to save costs and finish a phase 3 study of its Xolremdi (mavorixafor) in neutropenia.
The layoffs are expected to deliver annualized cost savings of approximately $13 million and should be complete during the third quarter of this year, X4 said in a Sept. 17 filing. The company expects to record charges of $3.3 million related to the restructuring.
All told, the restructuring should align future spending with X4’s “long-term strategy” to complete its phase 3 4WARD study, the company said in a press release.
X4’s slate of C-suite executives were not spared by the cuts. The drugmaker parted ways with its chief commercial officer Mark Baldry, its chief operating officer Mary DiBiase and its chief legal and compliance officer Natasha Thoren in terminations that were attributed to the workforce reduction.
Moving forward, recently appointed company President John Volpone is set to take over for DiBiase in an expanded role, while new Executive Chairman Adam Craig, Ph.D., will oversee clinical development, the company said.
Chief Medical Officer Christophe Arbet‑Engels, M.D., Ph.D., is also out, although his departure was attributed to a resignation for “personal reasons.”
With that, the company has effectively overhauled its entire executive team. Last month saw the departure of Chief Financial Officer Adam Mostafa as well as longtime CEO and founder Paula Ragan, Ph.D. In their place, X4’s board appointed three new execs, including Volpone and Craig. The new appointments are now the only members of the management team listed on X4’s website.
“Over the coming weeks, we plan to continue to drive operational efficiencies, consolidate resources, and strengthen our leadership structure,” Craig commented in the release. “With these changes, we expect to be well positioned to become a world‑class hematology company, beginning with the advancement of mavorixafor into chronic neutropenia.”
The sweeping cuts, made under what Craig calls “the new X4 management team,” mark the second round of layoffs X4 has initiated this year.
In February, the company implemented another “strategic restructuring” under a different mission of accelerating its U.S. promotion of Xolremdi in its current indication. The drug won approval last year to treat the rare immunodeficiency disorder WHIM syndrome (warts, hypogammaglobulinemia, infections and myelokathexis).
Earlier this year, X4 said it planned to let go of 30% of its staff (about 43 employees at the time), plus shut down a site in Austria and discontinue its research efforts in the hopes of decreasing annual spending by $30 million to $35 million. With that reorg, the company expected it would have enough funds to continue operations through the first half of 2026.
Xolremdi has generated $3.5 million in U.S. sales as of March 2025. With its still-enrolling phase 3 4WARD trial, X4 is looking to position the drug in the blood condition chronic neutropenia.
The trial is expected to reach full enrollment later this year, with top-line data potentially to follow in late 2026, the company said in June.