ESTERO, FL — February 13, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASBP) has appointed Phillip Balatsos to its Board of Directors, effective February 6, 2026.
The biopharmaceutical company, which focuses on developing multi-faceted patent-pending drug delivery technology, said the appointment follows the planned departures of Suren Ajjarapu and Donald G. Fell from the board.
Kraig Higginson, Interim CEO and Chairperson of the Aspire Biopharma Board, expressed his delight in welcoming Balatsos, stating that his leadership experience will provide invaluable guidance as the organization evolves and strengthens. Higginson is confident that Balatsos’ insights will help accelerate the company’s strategy of reformulating established drugs with large markets and reinforce the company’s commitment to patients, customers, and shareholders.
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, 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.
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.
Balatsos holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Skidmore College, with a minor in International Relations and a concentration in Spanish.
He will serve on the Audit and Compensation Committees.
Balatsos said that the company’s mission to provide rapid-onset therapeutics through novel sublingual formulations resonates strongly with his experience in scaling growth-stage companies. He looks forward to supporting the team as they advance their platform and drive the next phase of growth and innovation.
Aspire Biopharma has developed a patent-pending sublingual delivery technology that can deliver drugs to the body rapidly and precisely. The company says that 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.
Source: Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc.
