Shire's CFO resigns to join plant technology start-up

LONDON, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Pharmaceutical company Shire (Hamburg: 3979575.HM - news) said its chief financial officer Jeff Poulton will stand down at the end of the year to join Indigo Ag, a Boston-based start-up that seeks to improve agricultural productivity.

Poulton, who joined Shire (Xetra: S7E.DE - news) in 2003, has been CFO since January 2015, a period that saw Shire make its largest acquisition with the $32 billion purchase of Baxalta (Xetra: 9BX.DE - news) last year.

He said on Monday that it was a difficult decision to leave the rare disease drugs specialist, but he wanted to join a smaller organization where he could play a role in building a new company.

"As Shire finalises the integration of Baxalta and focuses on paying down debt, this also presents a perfect time for me to begin this transition," he said.

Shire's Chief Executive Flemming Ornskov said Poulton would lead the finance team through the third-quarter reporting period and would play an active role in the search for his successor

(Reporting by Paul Sandle)