Aegerion

The CEO of Aegerion Pharmaceuticals has resigned after months of pressure from activist investors.

In January this year, shareholders began attempts to oust Marc Beer, who was involved in messy divorce proceedings in 2014 and is alleged to have taken cocaine and swapped partners with a Jefferies & Co. investment banker.

In a 2014 affidavit, Christina Kelly, who was divorcing Jefferies employee Sage Kelly, claimed Aegerion CEO Marc Beer was one of her husband’s “drug cohorts”. Christina Kelly claimed that during a 2012 trip business trip to Boston, the Kellys, Beer, and Beer’s girlfriend took cocaine and, at the CEO’s suggestion, had group sex. Beer denied the allegations.

In January 2015, shareholders expressed concerns to Aegerion’s board about the company’s weak share price and the credibility of Beer and his management team, according to Reuters. The sources added investors have questioned Aegerion’s acquisition of Myalept from AstraZeneca last year.

Aegerion’s top five investors are Scopia Management, Fidelity Management, Broadfin Capital, Putnam Investment Management, and Westfield Capital Management.