SiliconBeat

A chief executive paying money to buy his own company’s stock is rare enough, but when he violates its code of ethics in the process, we’re talking news.

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Should they be out this St. Patrick’s evening drinking beer, some Nuvelo employees may have good reason to be crying in it. The San Carlos biotech said in a filing with the SEC it would layoff 22 percent of its workers beginning Thursday because it has decided to discontinue clinical development of its blood-clot dissolver, alfimeprase, after results of its latest trials fell short of expectations.

Nuvelo had 76 employees as of Dec. 31, down by nearly half from the year before. It will
provide severance to the terminated employees and expects to take a $3 million restructuring charge in its current quarter.

Among those losing his job is Michael Levy, executive vice president in charge of research and development. His severance package includes 12 months of salary “”continuation” worth $410,000 last year. He’ll also get 12 months of accelerated vesting of stock options and the
company will pick up the tab for his COBRA medical insurance coverage premiums, worth about $18.969. Last year’s proxy also listed a $225,000 cash bonus among his termination benefits.