We establish innovative and novel therapies.

Ran serves as the Managing Partner and Co-founder of Pontifax, a global investment firm with a diversified portfolio of more than 55 companies worldwide. Pontifax is recognized for its focus on investing in cutting-edge biotech and life science companies, managing assets valued at approximately $1.2bn under management. 

Ran holds board positions in several of Pontifax's portfolio companies, such as Keros Therapeutics (Ticker:"KROS"), Kamari Pharma, Luris Therapeutics, and Adcytherix Therapeutics.

Previously, Ran served on boards of directors for Kite Pharma (acquired by Gilead), cCAM Therapeutics Ltd (acquired by Merk), ArQule Inc. (acquired by Merk), and Prevail Therapeutics (acquired by Eli Lilly).

Dr. Samuel Waksal, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Graviton Bioscience Corporation, is a distinguished figure in biotech innovation. His career is marked by founding and leading several pioneering biotech companies. He founded and led ImClone Systems, a company that redefined biotech innovation and led to a $7 billion acquisition by Eli Lilly & Company. Dr. Waksal also founded Meira GTx, a leader in gene therapy innovation. He also founded and led Kadmon Corporation, where he was pivotal in developing a selective ROCK2 inhibitor, leading to a $2 billion acquisition by Sanofi.

Dr. Waksal's academic tenure is equally robust, having served in esteemed roles at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, National Cancer Institute, as a visiting fellow at Weil Cornell Medical College, as an assistant professor at Tufts University School of Medicine and a senior scientist at the Tufts Cancer Research Center. Additionally, his work at Stanford University Medical School, as a scholar at the Leukemia Society of America, as a visiting professor at the Pasteur Institute in France and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel highlights his profound scientific insights.

James Boylan is Chief Executive Officer of Enavate Sciences and is an accomplished health care executive, entrepreneur, and innovator with nearly three decades of experience. Mr. Boylan most recently served as President and Head of Investment Banking of SVB Leerink, where he architected and led the firm’s transformation into an industry-leading health care investment bank that was acquired by SVB Financial in 2019. Across his 12 years at SVB Leerink and prior 12 years as a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch, Mr. Boylan has worked with hundreds of life sciences and biotechnology companies to develop strategy and complete transactions in capital markets and mergers & acquisitions. Mr. Boylan also serves on the board of directors of Zenas Biopharma, Compass Therapeutics and Immunome, Inc. (Nasdaq:IMMU)

Mr. Boylan earned an M.B.A in finance from the Columbia Business School and a B.S. in finance from Lehigh University.

David MacMillan (Sir) was born in Scotland and was educated at the University of Glasgow, UC Irvine, and Harvard. He began his independent career at UC Berkeley, before moving to a Chaired position at Caltech in 2000. In 2006, Dave joined Princeton University, where he is the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor. Dave shares the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Benjamin List and was Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2022. Dave continues to consult with many of the world’s major pharmaceutical companies (Merck, Pfizer, Gilead, Abbvie) and has founded several biotech companies.

Dixon Boardman is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Optima Asset Management LLC and the Vice-Chairman of FFT Wealth Management, a subsidiary of Stanhope Capital, one of the world’s largest independent wealth management and advisory firms, with assets under management of $35B. Mr. Boardman was one of the early fund-of-funds innovators in the US, having launched Optima’s flagship fund in July 1988. Because of his experience and expertise in the hedge fund industry, Mr. Boardman is often quoted in the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal, as well as in other financial publications. He appears frequently on CNBC to give his overview on the hedge fund industry.

In addition, Mr. Boardman has served as Chairman of the Special Projects Committee of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and is currently a member of the President’s Council of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Council. Mr. Boardman is a Director of Florida Crystals Corporation, and an Advisory Board Director of J.C. Bamford Excavators (U.K.).

Prior to forming Optima, Mr. Boardman advised high net worth individuals, first as a Senior Vice President at Kidder, Peabody, where he was one of the 20 leading stockbrokers in the firm, and then at UBS PaineWebber, where he was a member of the Chairman’s Council. Mr. Boardman attended McGill University.