New independent director Phillip Balatsos brings commercial and capital markets expertise to drive development patent-pending drug delivery platform
ESTERO, FL / ACCESS Newswire / February 13, 2026 / Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASBP) (“Aspire” or the “Company”), a biopharmaceutical company developing multi-faceted patent-pending drug delivery technology, today announced the appointment of Phillip Balatsos to its Board of Directors, effective February 6, 2026. The appointment follows the planned departures of Suren Ajjarapu and Donald G. Fell, from the board.
“On behalf of our Board, I am delighted to welcome Phillip to the Aspire Biopharma Board. His leadership experience will provide invaluable guidance as the organization continues to evolve and strengthen,” said Kraig Higginson, Interim CEO and Chairperson of the Aspire Biopharma Board. “We are confident that his insights will help accelerate our strategy of reformulating established drugs with large markets and reinforce the Company’s commitment to patients, customers, and shareholders.”
Phillip Balatsos is a senior financial markets executive and board director with over 25 years of experience across foreign exchange, emerging markets, institutional sales and trading, and public company governance. He has held leadership roles at global financial institutions including Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse, and XP Investments, and currently operates within an independent trading platform at Oscar Gruss & Son.
In addition to his capital markets career, Mr. Balatsos brings entrepreneurial and operating experience, having founded and scaled a multi-location hospitality business and advised national restaurant groups on procurement, pricing, and operational efficiency. This background provides a pragmatic operator’s perspective on margins, cost structures, and execution-particularly valuable in growth and turnaround environments.
Mr. Balatsos currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Inspire Veterinary Partners, Inc., where he is a member of the Audit Committee, and Ciso Global, Inc., a cybersecurity and risk management company. He previously served on the Board of Sadot Group Inc., contributing to its transformation from a restaurant operator into a global agri-commodity trading and food supply chain business, and serving on both the Audit and Executive Compensation Committees.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Skidmore College, with a minor in International Relations and a concentration in Spanish.
Phillip Balatsos will serve on the Audit and Compensation Committees.
“The Company’s mission to provide rapid-onset therapeutics through novel sublingual formulations resonates strongly with my experience in scaling growth-stage companies,” said Mr. Balatsos. “I look forward to supporting this team as they advance their platform and drive the next phase of growth and innovation.”
About Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc.
Aspire Biopharma has developed a patent-pending sublingual delivery technology that can deliver drugs to the body rapidly and precisely. This technology offers the potential to improve effectiveness and reduce side effects by going directly to the bloodstream and avoiding the gastrointestinal tract. Aspire Biopharma’s delivery technology can be applied to many different active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and other bioactive substances, spanning both small and large molecule therapeutics, nutraceuticals and supplements.
For more information, please visit www.aspirebiolabs.com
Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc.
Contact
PCG Advisory
Kevin McGrath
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kevin@pcgadvisory.com
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This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, which are intended to be covered by the “safe harbor” provisions created by those laws. Aspire’s forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding our future operations. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements represent our views as of the date of this press release and involve a number of judgments, risks and uncertainties. We anticipate that subsequent events an developments will cause our views to change. We undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date. As a result of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, our actual results or performance may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include general market conditions, whether clinical trials demonstrate the efficacy and safety of our drug candidates to the satisfaction of regulatory authorities, or do not otherwise produce positive results which may cause us to incur additional costs or experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete the development and commercialization of our drug candidates; the clinical results for our drug candidates, which may not support further development or marketing approval; actions of regulatory agencies, which may affect the initiation, timing and progress of clinical trials and marketing approval; our ability to achieve commercial success for our drug candidates, if approved, our limited operating history and our ability to obtain additional funding for operations and to complete the development and commercialization of our drug candidates; that the Company will be able to meet the deadlines or conditions imposed by the Hearings Panel or regain compliance with all applicable requirements for continued listing, and other risks and uncertainties set forth in “Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. In addition, statements that “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this press release, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and you are cautioned not to rely unduly upon these statements. All information in this press release is as of the date of this press release. The information contained in any website referenced herein is not, and shall not be deemed to be, part of or incorporated into this press release.
SOURCE: Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc.
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