# David Peacock

> David Peacock is the chief executive of Vaxxas and a global biopharmaceutical operator whose career has crossed commercial, financial and general-management roles in the United States, Asia, Europe and Australia. After more than two decades at Merck, most recently as president of its global vaccines business, he joined Vaxxas in January 2026 to lead the commercialisation of its high-density microarray patch vaccine-delivery platform.

- **Role:** Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director at Vaxxas
- **Organizations:** Vaxxas, Merck & Co. (MSD), Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, US-ASEAN Business Council, Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, Bain & Company, Nuun & Co.
- **Education:** Undergraduate degree in Economics, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Coursework, London School of Economics, Master of Business Administration, Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management
- **Known for:** Led global commercial strategy for Merck's vaccine business, which generated more than $10 billion annually., Held senior financial, commercial and general-management roles across Japan, the United States, Europe and Asia during more than two decades at Merck., Served on the Gavi Board and on boards or industry bodies including the US-ASEAN Business Council and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.

## Career timeline

- **Early career** — Worked for Bain & Company in Australia and co-founded Nuun & Co.
- **2000s-2010s** — Built an international Merck/MSD career in commercial and leadership posts across the United States, Singapore, Vietnam, Japan and Hong Kong and Macau.
- **Before 2019** — Served as chief of staff to Merck chairman and CEO Ken Frazier and as chief financial officer of MSD Japan.
- **2019** — Became managing director of MSD UK & Ireland.
- **2022** — Became president of MSD Asia Pacific.
- **2024** — Moved into the role of president, Merck Global Vaccines, responsible for global commercial strategy for a business generating more than $10 billion annually.
- **2026** — Appointed chief executive officer and executive director of Vaxxas to lead commercialisation of its HD-MAP vaccine-delivery platform.

## Achievements

- Led global commercial strategy for Merck's vaccine business, which generated more than $10 billion annually.
- Held senior financial, commercial and general-management roles across Japan, the United States, Europe and Asia during more than two decades at Merck.
- Served on the Gavi Board and on boards or industry bodies including the US-ASEAN Business Council and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.
- Co-founded Nuun & Co., the company behind dissolvable hydration tablets.
- Joined Vaxxas as it moved from clinical validation toward commercial execution with a TGA-licensed manufacturing facility and automated aseptic production lines.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Vaxxas launched a study in Germany, France and Italy to examine attitudes toward self-administered vaccination and use of its HD-MAP platform; Peacock said the findings would inform how the technology might be used in real-world settings.
- **2026-02** — A consortium of Vaxxas, SK bioscience and IDT Biologika won a €12.9 million phase-one EU tender to advance seasonal and pre-pandemic influenza vaccines using HD-MAP technology.
- **2026-01** — Peacock became CEO and executive director of Vaxxas after serving as president of Merck Global Vaccines.

## Links

- Website: https://vaxxas.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peacockdavid

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/david-peacock
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-27