Ascendis Health
Joseph Fine has a diverse work experience in the legal and corporate sectors. Joseph is currently serving as the Head of Legal at Ascendis Health since October 2022, and they have also held the position of M&A Principal at the same company from December 2018 to November 2022. In addition, they have served as a Non Executive Director at Limberg Mining Company (Pty) Ltd and Chromtech Mining Company (Pty) Ltd since September 2022. Prior to these roles, Joseph worked as an Associate at Coast2Coast Capital from May 2016 to December 2018. Joseph also gained experience at ENS (Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs) as a Senior Associate (Corporate and Commercial) from March 2013 to April 2016, and as an Associate (Corporate and Commercial) from February 2012 to February 2013. Joseph started their career at Brink Cohen Le Roux Inc as a Candidate Attorney from January 2009 to December 2010, and later served as an Associate from January 2011 to January 2012. Overall, Joseph has a strong legal background with experience in various industries.
Joseph Fine attended Westerford High School from 1998 to 2002. Joseph then pursued a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree at the University of Cape Town from 2006 to 2008.
Ascendis Health
Background Ascendis Health is a health and wellness company founded in 2008 and listed in the healthcare sector of the JSE in November 2013. In 2015, the Group embarked on an international growth strategy and acquired four businesses in Europe: Farmalider in Spain (2015), Remedica in Cyprus (2016), Scitec in Hungary (2016) and Sunwave Pharma in Romania (2017). Today Ascendis Health has a global reach with well-known brands and products sold to more than 120 countries across all continents. Strategic focus Against a backdrop of too much debt and limited operational flexibility we have set out a three-pillar strategy with the following focus areas: Pillar1: Stabilise (‘Fix the balance sheet’) • Set the medium-term portfolio strategy – which companies we should keep and which we should sell • Restructure existing debt to match the long-term portfolio strategy • Introduce sufficient new money to restore operational flexibility and ability to execute ‘Optimise’ Pillar Pillar 2: Optimise (‘Right-size and create platform businesses’) • Set the operating model to align with portfolio strategy and reduce complexity • Implement Project Office discipline to drive efficiencies, capital allocation optimization, and margin management strategies in each Business Unit • Create Business Unit specific incentivization programs and develop owner-manager mindsets Pillar 3: Grow (‘Maximise value and grow the platforms’) • Deleveraging strategy to take onto account the interim cash conversion profiles of the underlying business • Remain flexible to access attractive market windows • Deploy capital to underpin steady state portfolio