ShangPharma Innovation Names Two Executives-In-Residence

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Oct. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- ShangPharma Innovation Inc., a global venture capital firm and innovation incubator focused on biomedical R&D therapeutics and technologies, announced the appointment of Dirk G. Brockstedt, Ph.D., and Benson Tsang, MBA, to its Executive-In-Residence (EIR) team.

ShangPharma Innovation's esteemed EIR team provides the organization with expert advice on business, financial, scientific and strategic development of important biomedical initiatives, including the identification and assessment of novel opportunities for early-stage equity investments and promising incubator tenants for ShangPharma Innovation's South San Francisco facility. EIRs also participate in the negotiation and management of collaborations, licenses and partnerships.

"Dirk and Benson collectively bring a deep level of scientific and financial acumen to our EIR team," said Dr. Walter H. Moos, CEO of ShangPharma Innovation. "Together with their EIR colleagues, we anticipate they will play a vital role in our mission to accelerate and facilitate pharmaceutical R&D, as we continue to build a robust biotechnology innovation and investment practice."

Dr. Brockstedt is executive vice president of research and development for Aduro Biotech, an immunotherapy company. Prior to joining Aduro in 2009, he held various positions at Cerus Corp., where he was a foundational member of the original immunotherapy group. Dr. Brockstedt previously served as a scientist at Aventis, where he developed novel cancer therapies. He has co-authored 40 scientific papers and is a named inventor on five issued patents and several pending applications. He holds a degree in microbiology from the University of Kiel in Germany and completed doctoral and postdoctoral work at Stanford University and the Stanford School of Medicine.

Benson Tsang brings nearly 30 years of financial and general management experience to ShangPharma Innovation. He has served as an independent director of ShangPharma Corp. and previously held the role of chief financial officer at WuXi Pharmatech Inc., where he was instrumental in the company's successful IPO in 2007. Benson also held senior positions at ATA Inc., PCCW Ltd., Imation Corp., Coopers & Lybrand and Deloitte. He is a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Benson also holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree and an MBA from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

About ShangPharma Innovation Inc.

ShangPharma Innovation Inc. is a novel healthcare venture capital firm founded in the U.S. in 2016. ShangPharma Innovation accelerates and facilitates pharmaceutical discovery and development – focusing on therapeutics and technology platforms – and offers funding, incubator space, and other support to its ecosystem of portfolio companies, collaborators, and partners. This includes sponsoring biotech start-ups and proof-of-concept research at major academic and medical centers and research institutes. For more information, see http://www.spiivc.com.

SOURCE ShangPharma Innovation Inc.