Mercia has appointed a new Advisory Board, formed of four industry leaders, to shape its investment strategy in the Life sciences and Bio-sciences sector. It is the third sector-specific advisory board that Mercia has created this year.
The new board’s members – Mary Anne Cordeiro, David Ebsworth, Frank Collins and Jim Reid – will work with Mercia’s investment team to provide a market-wide view on topical issues in order to guide Mercia’s investment strategy, as well as the growth strategy of its life sciences portfolio. They will also play an instrumental role in helping to appoint key members of management for Mercia’s portfolio using their extensive personal networks.
Mercia’s investment strategy in this sector is led by Peter Dines, the former Managing Director of Surgicraft and Founder and CEO of Surgi C Group. It is focused on Medtech devices, diagnostics and digital healthcare solutions, whilst avoiding areas that are particularly capital intensive. Mercia’s strategy has a specific interest in deal flow from the Midlands, the North of England and Scotland.
Mary Anne Cordeiro has worked as an adviser and merchant banker to companies in the healthcare sector since 2000, with a focus on businesses in diagnosis, drug delivery, orthopaedics, therapeutic devices and precision medicine. In 2014 she was named by BioBeat as one of 50 experienced leaders in UK Life Sciences.
David Ebsworth is a healthcare executive, board member and consultant with experience in speciality pharma, large pharma, biotech, genetics, over-the-counter (OTC), and pharmaceutical wholesale, retail and services. He has held over 11 board-level positions in businesses spanning the UK, Europe, the US, Australia and Japan, and has been involved in a number of high-value IPOs and trade sales.
Frank Collins is a senior executive and company chairman with a portfolio of non-executive roles including: chairman of The Frontier Medical Group, a manufacturer of pressure area care, infection control and harm-reduction products and; chairman of JRI Orthopaedics Limited, which designs, develops and manufactures orthopaedic implants and surgical instruments.
Jim Reid has worked in the life sciences sector for the past 40 years, holding senior roles in Axis-Shield PLC, Chiron S.A, Roche and Trinity Biotech. He also founded and manages a specialist life sciences investment fund, ChimaeraBio, which has made a number of successful early stage life sciences investments.
Peter Dines, Investment Director and Head of Life sciences & Bio-sciences at Mercia, said:
“Mercia believes that external Advisory Boards assist us in making the best possible decisions for our investors and shareholders, which is why we have now set up three sector-specific boards to guide strategy and provide industry insight.
“Mary Anne, David, Frank and Jim have all built impressive careers spanning venture capital and life sciences. This experience, accompanied by their own networks of industry connections, will be of significant value to Mercia’s portfolio of companies as they help to open up commercial opportunities which would otherwise take years to uncover.”
Mercia Technologies PLC has seven companies in its Life Sciences & Bio-sciences portfolio. Recent investments include: Medherant, an IP-rich University of Warwick spinout developing novel transdermal drug delivery patches, and; Concepta PLC, a women’s health diagnostics company with an initial focus on unexplained fertility.