Meet Róbert Wessman

Róbert Wessman is Chairman of the board of Lotus.

Róbert is a global leader in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars. Over the past 25 years he has created and grown numerous enterprises with a singular purpose: to make life-changing medicines more affordable and readily available to people and patients around the world. 

Alongside Lotus, Róbert has founded and led multiple 'unicorns' — enterprises scaled to be worth more than $1bn — in this space worldwide. His other companies include generics makers and distributors Actavis, Alvogen, Medis and Adalvo, as well as Iceland-based biosimilars pioneer Alvotech. His achievements and business strategies have been the subject of three Harvard Busines School case studies.

A decade ago, as CEO of Alvogen, Róbert chose Taiwan’s Lotus as the engine to expand his vision and impact into APAC markets. Coming from an island country himself, he knows and appreciates the values held by the Taiwanese, sharing a similar ambition and drive. In 2022, Róbert's long-term healthcare investment company Aztiq partnered with Innobic to acquire Lotus and launch its next chapter as a regional leader putting important medicines in the hands of those who need them.

Róbert was born and raised in Iceland. He attended public schools in the Reykjavik area and received his BA in business administration from the University of Iceland. In 1999, at the age of 29, Róbert left his position in the Hamburg office of an Icelandic shipping line and returned to Iceland to become CEO of a near bankrupt local drugmaker, Delta. Merged with another local pharmaceutical company, Actavis was born, and by the time Róbert stepped down as CEO in 2008 to found Alvogen, it had grown to be one of the world's largest generics companies. He has been leading force for growth and innovation in the sector ever since. 

Róbert and his wife have six children. An avid and formerly competitive cyclist, he enjoys spending all the time he can at his vineyard in central France.