SS Innovations (SSII) hires Sarah M. Romano as CFO with $440,000 base pay
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
SS Innovations International, Inc. appointed Sarah M. Romano as Chief Financial Officer, effective August 3, 2026, under a three-year employment agreement. The agreement provides an annual base salary of $440,000 plus eligibility for an annual performance-based cash bonus.
Romano will receive options under the 2026 Incentive Stock Plan to purchase 750,000 shares of common stock, vesting as to 250,000 shares on the first anniversary and then in 23 monthly installments of 20,833 shares and a final installment of 20,841 shares, subject to continued employment. The contract includes customary confidentiality, proprietary rights, non-competition and non-solicitation covenants and an indemnification agreement. Romano brings more than two decades of financial leadership experience in medical technology and life sciences companies and has helped raise over $100 million through public and private financings.
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Incentive Stock Plan financial
non-competition regulatory
indemnification agreement regulatory
telesurgery capability medical
forward-looking statements regulatory
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regulatory
FAQ
Who was appointed as the new CFO of SS Innovations (SSII) and when is it effective?
What are the main compensation terms for SSII’s new CFO, Sarah M. Romano?
How many stock options will SSII’s CFO receive and how do they vest?
What prior experience does SSII’s new CFO, Sarah M. Romano, have?
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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934
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Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
As used in this Current Report on Form 8-K (this “Current Report”), the terms “SSi,” “the Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to SS Innovations International, Inc. and its subsidiaries.
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
Appointment of new Chief Financial Officer
On July 14, 2026, we issued a press release announcing the appointment of Sarah M. Romano as the Company’s new Chief Financial Officer, effective August 3, 2026. Ms. Romano will be based in the United States. A copy of the press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report and is incorporated herein by reference.
Ms. Romano, 46, has over two decades of experience as a financial professional. Prior to joining the Company, from April 2025 to July 2026, Ms. Romano served as the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Vicarious Surgical Inc. (NYSE/OTCQB: RBOT), a robotic surgery company developing next-generation minimally invasive surgical technology. She previously served as Chief Financial Officer of Entero Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ENTO) (formerly First Wave BioPharma), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of targeted, orally delivered therapies for gastrointestinal diseases, from March 2022 to March 2025. Prior thereto, she served as Chief Financial Officer of Kiora Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: KPRX) (formerly EyeGate Pharmaceuticals, Inc.), a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company developing products for treating ophthalmic diseases, from February 2017 through February 2022, and as its Corporate Controller from August 2016 to January 2017. Ms. Romano began her career as an auditor in the Boston office of PricewaterhouseCoopers. A licensed CPA in Massachusetts, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from College of the Holy Cross and a Master of Accounting from Boston College.
The Company and Ms. Romano entered into a three-year employment agreement, effective August 3, 2026 (the “Employment Agreement”), providing for annual base compensation of $440,000. Ms. Romano will be eligible for an annual cash bonus based on achievement of certain performance criteria and subject to the terms of the Employment Agreement. In addition, the Employment Agreement provides for Ms. Romano to receive a grant of options under the Company’s 2026 Incentive Stock Plan (the “Incentive Plan”) to purchase 750,000 shares of the Company’s common stock vesting as to 250,000 shares on the first anniversary of the effective date and thereafter in twenty-three (23) installments of 20,833 shares, and a final monthly installment of 20,841 shares, subject to continued employment of Ms. Romano by the Company and the other terms and conditions of the Incentive Plan. The Employment Agreement also contains customary confidentiality, assignment of proprietary rights, non-competition and non-solicitation provisions.
In addition to the foregoing, on the effective date of the Employment Agreement the Company will enter into an indemnification agreement with Ms. Romano in the form of Exhibit A to the Employment Agreement.
The above summary of the Employment Agreement is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Employment Agreement, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 10.1 to this Current Report and is incorporated herein by reference.
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Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits
| Exhibit No. | Description | |
| 10.1 | Employment Agreement between SS Innovations International, Inc. and Sarah M. Romano | |
| 99.1 | Press Release, dated July 14, 2026 | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) |
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Dated: July 14, 2026 | SS INNOVATIONS INTERNATIONAL, INC. | |
| By: | /s/ Sudhir Srivastava | |
| Sudhir Srivastava, M.D. | ||
| Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ||
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Exhibit 99.1
SS Innovations Appoints Sarah M. Romano as Chief Financial Officer
Veteran medtech finance executive brings extensive public company and capital markets experience to support the Company’s next phase of global growth
Fort Lauderdale, FL – July 14, 2026 – SS Innovations International, Inc. (the “Company” or “SS Innovations”) (Nasdaq: SSII), a developer of innovative surgical robotic technologies dedicated to making robotic surgery affordable and accessible to a global population, today announced the appointment of Sarah M. Romano as Chief Financial Officer, effective August 3, 2026. Ms. Romano will be based in the United States.
Dr. Sudhir Srivastava, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of SS Innovations, commented, “We are thrilled to welcome Sarah as our Chief Financial Officer at this critical moment in our growth journey. As we continue our global expansion, including pursuing U.S. FDA approval of our advanced, cost-effective SSi Mantra surgical robotic system, Sarah brings strong financial leadership, keen strategic vision, and extensive capital markets experience. She will play an integral role in scaling and enhancing our financial operations to accommodate our anticipated growth.”
Ms. Romano added, “I am delighted for this opportunity to collaborate closely with Dr. Sudhir and the leadership team as SS Innovations delivers on its mission to democratize global access to cutting-edge surgical robotic care.”
Ms. Romano is a seasoned public company finance executive, bringing more than two decades of experience leading capital strategy, corporate growth, and financial operations in the medical technology and life sciences industries. Most recently, Ms. Romano served as Chief Financial Officer of Vicarious Surgical, a robotic surgery company where she led financial and operational initiatives to significantly reduce cash burn, strengthen the balance sheet, and support the company’s strategic objectives. Previously, she served as Chief Financial Officer of Entero Therapeutics and Kiora Pharmaceuticals, where she led capital raising activities, strategic transactions, SEC reporting, and investor relations programs. Throughout her career, Ms. Romano has raised more than $100 million through public and private financings and has extensive experience supporting emerging growth public companies, including robotic surgery and medical technology organizations, through periods of transformation, growth, and strategic change.
Ms. Romano began her career as an auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Massachusetts. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from the College of the Holy Cross and Master of Accountancy in Accounting from Boston College.
About SS Innovations
SS Innovations International, Inc. (Nasdaq: SSII) develops innovative surgical robotic technologies with a vision to make the benefits of robotic surgery affordable and accessible to a larger segment of the global population. The Company’s product range includes its proprietary “SSi Mantra” surgical robotic system and its comprehensive suite of “SSi Mudra” surgical instruments, which support a variety of surgical robotic procedures including cardiac surgery. An American company headquartered in India, SS Innovations plans to expand the global presence of its technologically advanced, user-friendly, and cost-effective surgical robotic solutions. Visit the Company’s website at ssinnovations.com or LinkedIn for more information and updates.
About the SSi Mantra
The SSi Mantra is a user-friendly, modular, multi-arm system with advanced technology features, including: 3 to 5 modular robotic arms, an open-faced ergonomic surgeon command center, a large 3D 4K monitor, a touch panel monitor for all patient-related information display, a virtual real-time image of the robotic patient side arm carts, and the ability for superimposition of 3D models of diagnostic imaging. The optional SSi MantrAsana tele-surgeon console is a portable, compact alternative to the SSi Mantra’s standard surgeon command center that provides equivalent control functionality while enabling enhanced portability, ergonomic flexibility, and telesurgery capability. The SSi Mantra utilizes over 40 different types of robotic endo-surgical instruments to support different specialties, including cardiac surgery, and 5mm instruments for the pediatric population and ENT surgeries. A vision cart provides the table-side team with the same magnified 3D 4K view as the surgeon to provide better safety and efficiency. The SSi Mantra has been clinically validated in India in more than 170 different types of surgical procedures.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain statements that are not historical facts and are considered forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “will,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “should,” “could,” “seek,” “designed,” “potential,” “forecast,” “target,” “objective,” “goal,” or the negatives of such terms or other similar expressions to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or SS Innovations’ future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.
Investor Contact:
The Equity Group
Kalle Ahl, CFA
T: (303) 953-9878
kahl@theequitygroup.com
Devin Sullivan, Managing Director
T: (212) 836-9608
dsullivan@theequitygroup.com
Media Contact:
RooneyPartners LLC
Kate Barrette
T: (212) 223-0561
kbarrette@rooneypartners.com