David Epstein, former CEO of Seagen who oversaw its sale to Pfizer in 2023 is set bring his expertise to JP Morgan’s life sciences capital investment division. With 30 years of industry experience, including deal making, drug development, commercialization, etc. will advise JP Morgan life sciences capital for early and groth-stage healthcare companies.
J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital announced the addition of David Epstein to its Healthcare Advisory Board. Mr. Epstein was CEO of Seagen before closing its sale to Pfizer in December 2023. David previously served as Executive Partner at Flagship Pioneering as well as CEO of Novartis Pharmaceuticals. His 30 years of industry experience includes drug development, deal making, venture investing, commercialization, and leadership experience on a global scale.
Mr. Epstein will now advise the J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital team. The team invests in both early and growth-stage healthcare companies across multiple strategies aligned to specific market opportunities, with a focus on novel therapeutics and technologies in several target areas including Genetic Medicine, Oncology, Neurodegenerative Disease, Rare Diseases, Autoimmunity, AI/ML platforms, Metabolic Diseases and Neuropsychology.
“As we continue on the journey of therapeutic innovation, we are excited about our ability to bring together some of the industry’s best minds with J.P. Morgan’s extensive healthcare ecosystem to capture compelling investment opportunities,” said Stephen Squinto, Chief Investment Officer of J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital. “David brings a diverse set of skills and expertise to the table and we are thrilled he has agreed to join us in our quest for innovation in life sciences.”
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The J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital team leverages JPMorgan Chase’s scale, resources, data assets and healthcare expertise and sits within J.P. Morgan Private Capital, a venture and growth equity investment platform that is part of J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The platform finances the continued growth of private companies and taps into significant pre-IPO value creation opportunities in the consumer and technology, and life sciences sectors.
J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital has attracted a group of Strategic Advisors comprised of some of the life sciences industry’s foremost experts that will help guide the investment strategy, help to source investment opportunities and provide operational expertise to J.P. Morgan’s portfolio companies. With the addition of Mr. Epstein, Strategic Advisors include:
- David Epstein – Past Chief Executive Officer, Seagen Inc.
- Laurie Glimcher, M.D. – President and CEO, Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Jeffrey Leiden, M.D., Ph.D. – Executive Chairman, Vertex Pharmaceuticals
- Frederic Moll, M.D. – Chief Development Officer, J&J Medical Devices Companies
- Stephen Oesterle, M.D. – Former Medtronic SVP, Medicine and Technology
Biographies – Strategic Advisors
David Epstein was most recently chief executive officer of Seagen, a company that discovers, develops, manufactures, and commercializes targeted cancer therapeutics with antibody-drug conjugates at its core. During David’s tenure at Seagen, its portfolio of innovative targeted cancer medicines grew significantly and he ultimately led the merger of Seagen with Pfizer. David is also a board member at Valo Health, a company using AI and machine learning technology to reimagine drug discovery and development. From 2010-2016, David served as chief executive officer of Novartis Pharmaceuticals, a division of Novartis AG. Previously, David started and led Novartis’ Oncology and Molecular Diagnostic units. David’s experience also extends to early-stage discovery and innovation. He served as a consultant to Flagship Pioneering, a developer of bioplatform companies, Invus and several other firms. He has served as Chairman at Rubius Therapeutics, Axcella Therapeutics, Evelo Bio and as a board member at Ring Therapeutics, Tarus Therapeutics until its successful sale in June 2022, Senti Bio, Woosley Pharma and Cellestia AG. Over the course of his career, he led the development and commercialization of over 30 new molecular entities, including major breakthroughs such as Gleevec, Tasigna, Gilenya, Afinitor, Cosentyx and Entresto. His teams gained approval for over 100 new indications and launched three Prix Galien award winning medicines. He was also recognized by FierceBiotech as one of the “25 most influential people in biopharma.”
Laurie H. Glimcher, M.D. was named President and CEO of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 2016. She is also Director of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Richard and Susan Smith Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Previously, she was the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean and Professor of Medicine of Weill Cornell Medicine and Provost for Medical Affairs of Cornell University. Dr. Glimcher is a distinguished immunologist, widely renowned for her work in one of the most promising areas of cancer research. She is a Member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine and the American Philosophical Society, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the former President of the American Association of Immunologists. She previously served on the Board of Directors of Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Corporation, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Corporation and the Waters Corporation. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Analog Devices, Inc.
Jeffrey Leiden, M.D, Ph.D., is a physician and scientist who has dedicated his career to improving the lives of people with serious diseases. He currently serves as Vertex’s Executive Chairman and was the Chief Executive Officer and President from 2012 through March 2020. He has been a member of Vertex’s board of directors since July 2009, chairman of the board of directors since May 2012, and served as lead independent director from October 2010 through December 2011. Prior to joining Vertex, Dr. Leiden was a managing director at Clarus Ventures, a life sciences venture capital firm, from 2006 through January 2012. Dr. Leiden was President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Scientific Officer of Abbott Laboratories, Pharmaceuticals Products Group, and a member of the board of directors of Abbott Laboratories from 2000 to 2006. He is an elected member of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Leiden serves as a director of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company and as chairman of Odyssey Therapeutics, a privately held company developing novel medicines for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases and Casana Health, a privately held home-health monitoring company. He is also chairman of the board of Revolution Healthcare (REVH), a SPAC focused on companies that utilize novel technologies to revolutionize the treatment and delivery of mental healthcare. He is also a member of the MIT CEO Advisory Board, a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows, and chairman of the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership (MACP). Dr. Leiden received his M.D., Ph.D. and B.A. degrees from the University of Chicago.
Frederic (Fred) Moll, M.D. is Chief Development Officer of J&J Medical Devices Companies, having sold his sixth company, Auris Health, Inc., to J&J for $5.75 billion in 2019. Fred was the co-founder and CEO of Intuitive Surgical, the world’s leading medical robotics company today, with a market capitalization exceeding $100 billion. Fred is not only considered the “Father of Robotic Surgery” (having also founded Hansen Medical), Fred conceived and commercialized the early critical products that allowed minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery to be performed safely with his invention of the safety shield trocar (Endotherapeutics) and balloon distention tools (Origin MedSystems). Fred attended the University of California at Berkeley where he earned a B.A. degree, earned his M.D. degree from the University of Washington and attained an M.S. in Management from the Stanford Business School.
Stephen Oesterle, M.D. served as Medtronic’s Senior Vice President for Medicine and Technology, was a member of the Medtronic Executive Committee for 14 years, and currently serves on four public life sciences/healthcare boards. By forging relationships with global technology partners and technical universities, he oversaw long term internal technology investments while participating in strategic corporate investments in emerging private companies. He also served as a member of the Business Development and Strategy Committee that approved all corporate acquisitions. During his tenure at Medtronic Dr. Oesterle served on more than 20 boards as a director or observer and built a strong and enduring profile for Medtronic in the global venture capital and private equity communities. Prior to joining Medtronic, he was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and practicing interventional cardiologist. Steve earned his bachelor’s degree with Distinction at Harvard University and his MD at Yale Medical School.
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