ST. LOUIS, MO (April 7, 2016) – Life sciences venture capital firm RiverVest Venture Partners announced today that Nancy A. Hong, Ph.D., is joining the firm as managing director. The VC firm also announced that it is opening an office in San Diego where Hong will work with RiverVest Managing Director Niall O’Donnell, Ph.D.
Hong was previously a principal with BioMed Ventures where she originated and managed successful investments in therapeutics and medical devices. Prior to BioMed, she was an investment professional at Forward Ventures and an advisor to biotech and pharmaceutical companies entering new areas of research.
Trained in the areas of immunology and oncology, Hong received a Bachelor of Science with honors in Biology from the California Institute of Technology, a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, and postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Francisco.
“Nancy has a great history identifying successful investments,” said RiverVest Managing Director and co-founder Jay Schmelter. “She brings both scientific and transactional expertise and is well respected for her opinions and views on the venture industry. We’re excited to have her join the team.”
“I am thrilled to join such a highly regarded group of successful investors,” Hong said. “I look forward to building on the firm’s 16 years of bringing important therapies to patients.”
With the addition of Hong to the team, RiverVest, which has offices in St. Louis and Cleveland, is officially opening a San Diego office. Over the past decade, RiverVest has made 10 biomedical investments in San Diego, of which six have been acquired and one has had a public offering.
In addition to Schmelter, O’Donnell and Hong, RiverVest co-founder Tom Melzer and John McKearn serve as RiverVest’s managing directors.
About RiverVest Venture Partners®
RiverVest Venture Partners is a venture capital firm focused on identifying and shaping early-stage life science companies to create significant shareholder value. Because of its extensive operating expertise, RiverVest is able to help entrepreneurs achieve near-term objectives that position their companies for exit.
Established in 2000, RiverVest has funded 34 and exited or taken public 20 innovative life science companies. The venture capital firm has assets under management of $290 million.
