A Turkish-German couple, partnered with Pfizer Inc. in developing COVID-19 vaccine, has been named as “People of the year” by Britain’s Financial Times.

"By developing a Covid vaccine in less than a year, the couple achieved a remarkable scientific and business success," said the FT on Wednesday.

Ozlem Tureci and Ugur Sahin, who own BioNTech, announced positive results from the Phase 3 trials last month and expressed hope that their efforts would help bring an end to the global health crisis.

From humble roots as the son of a Turkish immigrant working at a Ford factory in Cologne, BioNTech Chief Executive Şahin, 55, now figures among the 100 richest Germans, together with his wife and fellow board member Tureci.

Ugur Shahin has been previously awarded for his scientific achievements one of the latest of them is Mustafa Prize in Iran, a platform for top scientists and innovative engineers from OIC member states.