)
Former Queensland Premier Peter Beattie has been named new chair of Brandon BioCatalyst, replacing one of the founding fathers of Australian venture capital, Bill Ferris, who is retiring from the role.
Beattie, described as a champion of innovation, is an existing board member at BioCatalyst, which is a collaboration of more than 50 of Australia's and New Zealand’s leading medical research institutes, hospitals and universities.
“With Peter Beattie now at the helm, Brandon BioCatalyst remains focused on building a globally competitive life sciences ecosystem - one that attracts patient capital, delivers returns for investors, creates opportunities for skilled talent, and drives meaningful improvements in people’s health.” says Dr Chris Nave, Brandon BioCatalyst CEO and Brandon Capital managing partner.
Brandon BioCatalyst is managed by Melbourne-headquartered life sciences venture capital firm Brandon Capital, which last month announced it had raised $439 million to invest in both early and late-stage Australian medical science companies.
For more than 15 years, Beattie has been joint adjunct professor at University of Queensland’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology and brings a "deep and distinguished background in biotechnology".
As Queensland Premier, Beattie developed and championed the Queensland Smart State strategy that set up the Medical Research Institutes, which delivered Gardasil and more recently Vicebio, a transformative leader and sector champion.
“Under Bill Ferris’s leadership, Brandon BioCatalyst experienced transformative growth, expanding its membership, launching major initiatives including the CUREator biotech incubator and WILD (Women in Leadership Development) Program while supporting member institute spinouts through global regulatory approvals that resulted in partnerships with international pharma,” says Beattie.
“Australia punches above its weight in medical research, and now we’ve got to make sure we’re punching just as hard in biotech commercialisation.
“As chair of Brandon BioCatalyst, I’m focused on ensuring Australia’s biotech innovations are equipped with the capital, capabilities and connections needed to retain lasting value in Australia.
“Queensland’s Smart State strategy showed what’s possible and I’m delighted to see Brandon BioCatalyst translating that spirit into nation-building through action, not just in name.”
Beattie’s appointment as chair was among a number of board changes announced by Brandon BioCatalyst which is tasked with scaling Australian medical research into globally competitive biotech companies.
Dr Andrew Nash, former chief scientific officer and global head of research at Australian biotech giant CSL (ASX: CSL), has also been appointed to the board.
Nash, who is a director of the Burnet Institute, played a key role in building a product pipeline, which has been instrumental in CSL’s emergence as one of Australia’s largest companies.
“Brandon BioCatalyst sits at the intersection of science and patient impact,” says Nash.
“It’s exciting to be supporting Australia’s leading medical research institutes at a time when Brandon Capital is deploying funds dedicated to identifying and scaling the country’s most promising biotech startups.”
Other board changes will see Ross King, managing director and founder of Treadstone Resources and former managing director at Goldman Sachs Australia, stepping into the deputy chair role.
Denise Allen, former Citigroup and AV Super executive, and Rob Knowles, former Victorian Minister for Health and Aged Care, will both step down, with their replacements to be announced later in the year.
Paying tribute to the contribution of the outgoing chairman, Nave says Bill Ferris has been “an extraordinary leader, a valued colleague and friend, and a fierce proponent of Australian innovation”.
“He understood deeply that successful biotech companies not only deliver investor returns but also generate high-value jobs and improved health outcomes,” says Nave.
Reflecting on the mission of Brandon BioCatalyst, Ferris says the collaboration was established to “transform world-class medical research into investible, scalable health solutions”.
“What began as a collaboration between eight medical research institutes has now grown into a dynamic network of more than 50 members across Australia and New Zealand, all working to translate breakthrough biotech innovations into therapies that reach patients,” he says.
Ferris is considered a pioneer of the innovation sector after establishing Australia's first venture capital firm in 1970. He also was inaugural chair of the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) which was established in 1986.
)
