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Dynamic Speaker Lineup Announced for BIO CEO & Investor Conference

December 14, 2017

Dynamic Speaker Lineup Announced for

BIO CEO & Investor Conference

20th Annual Meeting will be held February 13-14 in New York City

Washington, DC (December 14, 2017) – The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) today announces preliminary programing for the upcoming BIO CEO & Investor Conference to be held February 12-13, 2018 in New York. The program will include a diverse group of industry luminaries at the forefront of exciting science in such areas as gene therapy and new oncology treatments.

Moderated, one-on-one conversations with industry leaders, followed by interactive question and answer periods will occur daily during the conference. Referred to as “Fireside Chats”, these sessions will include headliners with some of the most notable IPOs and M&A track records in the biotech sector:

Deborah Dunsire, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer, XTuit Pharmaceuticals
Deborah Dunsire brings over 25 years of experience in developing and commercializing novel therapeutics across three continents. Formerly the CEO and President of Millennium Pharmaceuticals, she has worked with Johnson & Johnson, Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Novartis. Deborah has served for many years as a board member of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization.

Lan Huang, PhD, Co-Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer, BeyondSpring Pharmaceuticals
Lan Huang has more than a decade of entrepreneurial experience in the Chinese and U.S. biotechnology industries and invented and holds patents for a number of biotech products for oncology and dermatology indications. In 2009, she was the recipient of China’s “Thousand Talent Innovator Award.” BeyondSpring Pharmaceuticals conducted its IPO with Nasdaq in March 2017.

Jeffrey D. Marrazzo, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Spark Therapeutics
Jeff Marrazzo has led the creation and growth of Spark Therapeutics from a research center within the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to a fully integrated gene therapy company that is challenging the inevitability of genetic disease by discovering, developing and delivering potential treatments.

Vivek Ramaswamy, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Roivant Sciences
Prior to founding Roivant, Vivek Ramaswamy was an investor in the biotechnology sector. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Arbutus Biopharma Corporation and he is a member of the Board of Directors of Axovant Sciences, Myovant Sciences, and Roivant Sciences. He received an A.B. summa cum laude in biology from Harvard College and a J.D. from Yale Law School.

Vicki Sato, PhD, Chairman, Denali Therapeutics; Chairman, Vir Biotechnology
Currently, Vicki Sato serves as chair of the board of directors for recent-IPO Denali Therapeutics and for Vir Biotechnology.  She is also a member of the board of directors of publicly held companies Bristol Myers Squibb Company, PerkinElmer Corporation, Borg Warner Corporation, and Syros Pharmaceuticals. She was also the President of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, retiring in 2005, and has taught as a professor of management practice at Harvard.

Rachel Sherman, MD, MPH, Principal Deputy Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Dr. Sherman oversees all FDA medical programs and initiatives that are agency cross cutting and clinical, scientific, regulatory, or operational. She also provides advice and counsel to the FDA Commissioner on medical product regulation and oversees on his behalf other high-priority agency initiatives and programs. Key focus areas include modernization of combination product review, orphan product development, the Oncology Center of Excellence, promoting the use of innovative trial designs, and standards for evidence development.

The conference will also feature panel discussions focused on therapeutic applications/platforms, business topics and policy implications. They include:

  • Immuno-Oncology Milestones to Come: Pipelines Beyond CART-T 1.0
  • Neuroscience of Addiction: Levers to Attack the Opioid Abuse Crisis
  • Policy Outlook—Implications of the Tax Code Priorities of the Trump Administration
  • Advances in Dermatology: Recent Approvals and Later-Stage Trials
  • Market Outlook—How Durable is the IPO Resurgence and M&A Slowdown?
  • Updating Your China Growth Strategy: Opportunities in Investor and Regulatory Dynamism
  • Chronic Disease Innovation: PCSK9 Treatments’ Early Lessons for Other Therapies
  • The Art of the Exit: Planning for Your Company’s Acquisition
  • Funding Cures: Prioritizing Policy Barriers to Amortization of Therapeutic Spending
  • Instilling Innovation Ambitions in your Leadership Culture


Attendees will have access to the proprietary BIO One-on-One™ Partnering™ which provides the opportunity to arrange meetings between and among investors, companies and industry executives.

Institutional, private equity, angel and venture investors with funds on-hand and whose primary activity is direct investment in research and development companies are eligible for complimentary registration.  Equity research analysts from investment banking institutions and buy-side analysts also qualify as investors.

Among the high-profile investors already registered to attend are AbbVie Ventures, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Carlyle Group, GE Ventures, Guggenheim Partners, Jefferies, Mizuho, Corporate Bank, Morgan Stanley, NEW and SVB. The entire roster, which is up 35% over last year’s record-breaking participation, can be found here.

Advance media registration is now available for qualified reporters working full time for print, broadcast and web publications with valid press credentials.

Visit BIO CEO & Investor Conference for complete details on the entire program.

#BIOCEO18 is possible thanks to the generous support of our sponsors.


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