Belén Garijo to Lead Sanofi as CEO

Paris, February 12, 2026 (Sanofi) -- Sanofi has named Belen Garijo as its next Chief Executive Officer, following the Board’s decision not to renew Paul Hudson’s mandate. Hudson will step down on February 17, 2026, after six years leading the company’s strategic transformation.

Garijo will officially assume the CEO role after the Annual General Meeting on April 29, 2026, subject to shareholder approval of her nomination to the Board. During the interim period, Olivier Charmeil will serve as Interim CEO.

Currently CEO of Merck KGaA, Garijo made history in 2021 as the first woman to lead a DAX40-listed company in Germany. A medical doctor by training, she began her career in hospital medicine before moving into the pharmaceutical industry, holding leadership roles in R&D at Abbott Laboratories and spending 15 years at Sanofi in senior operational positions, including Vice President of Pharmaceutical Operations for Europe and Canada and member of the Executive Committee.

Read full article here.