Team

We are a world-class team with a track record of developing over ten products from IND to NDA/BLA, ultimately launching these for patients in Japan and Asia.

Management

BT Slingsby, MD, PhD, MPH

Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder

Takeshi Takahashi, MBA

Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder

Ryutaro Shimazaki

Chief Development Officer

Yoshiro Banno, MPH

Chief Financial Officer

Yoshihide Nakamura

Head of Clinical Study Operations

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

BT Slingsby, MD, PhD, MPH

Executive Chairman & Board Member

Takeshi Takahashi, MBA

Board Member

Nobuo Hanai, PhD

Board Member

Rami Suzuki

Auditor

Investors

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BT Slingsby, MD, PhD, MPH

Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder

BT Slingsby is Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder of Hepalys Pharma. He is also Founder and Managing Director with Catalys Pacific. He founded Catalys Pacific to transform life-sciences innovation using transpacific partnership. Dr. Slingsby leads the company creation efforts for the firm, having started Mineralys Therapeutics, Pathalys Pharma, Kirilys Therapeutics, Aculys Pharma, and Renalys Pharma along with Hepalys as founding CEO and Executive Chairman. Prior to Catalys Pacific, he founded and served as CEO and Executive Director of the Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund — the world’s first public-private fund focused on the development of new medicines for low- and middle-income countries.

BT graduated from Brown University with honors, earned his MPH and PhD from Kyoto University and the University of Tokyo, and received his MD with honors from the George Washington University. In recognition of his contributions to global health, he has been awarded a Foreign Ministry Commendation from the Government of Japan. His work has been featured in the Economist, Financial Times, CNBC Squawk Box, and the New York Times. BT is an author on over 50 peer-reviewed articles on medicine and public health, and formerly served as a Visiting Professor at Keio University, Kyoto University and Osaka University and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Tokyo.

Takeshi Takahashi, MBA

Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder

Takeshi Takahashi is Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder of Hepalys Pharma. He is also Managing Director with Catalys Pacific. He holds extensive experience in M&As, IPOs, and financing in the healthcare sector. Prior to Catalys Pacific, he worked for the investment banking division of Morgan Stanley for 12 years and played a significant role in over 30 distinguished transactions including, but not limited to, Japanese companies’ acquisitions of U.S. listed companies with an enterprise value of over US$10.0 billion, acquisitions of global healthcare companies with an enterprise value of over US$5.0 billion, and a number of alternative financing transactions. Prior to working for Morgan Stanley, Takeshi was an analyst and a portfolio manager for global and Japan fixed income and managed a $3.0+ billion portfolio in Japan and the U.S. at Merrill Lynch’s asset management division.

Takeshi graduated from Waseda University with a degree in Political Science and Economics, and holds an M.B.A. from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Proficiently bilingual and bicultural.

Ryutaro Shimazaki

Chief Development Officer

Ryutaro is a Partner with Catalys Pacific. Previous to Catalys Pacific, he led R&D at Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd. (previously known as Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd.) as Executive Officer. During his tenure at the company as Global Head of Nephrology R&D, he led the development and regulatory filings of top-selling medicines including Darbepoetin alfa, Evocalcet, Pegfilgrastim, and Burosumab. Ryutaro has led over 10 product launches in Japan and East Asia. He brings deep experience with PMDA on regulatory strategy and the submission and approval of multiple pharmaceutical products.

He graduated from Tokyo University of Science and is a Qualified Pharmacist

Yoshiro Banno, MPH

Chief Financial Officer

Chief Financial Officer of Hepalys Pharma and Principal at Catalys Pacific, with over 12 years of investment banking experience at JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley, primarily focused on cross-border M&A advisory and capital markets. He also has been involved in healthcare policy research and analysis at the Health and Global Policy Institute. He joined Hepays Pharma after serving as the CFO at Xcoo (tenku:), Inc., a genomics startup originated from the University of Tokyo.

Yoshiro graduated from the University of Tokyo (BA in Law), and holds an MPH from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Yoshihide Nakamura

Head of Clinical Study Operations

Yoshihide is Head of Clinical Study Operations with Hepalys Pharma.

He joined Kirin Brewery Co., Ltd. (currently Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd.) in 1997.

In the clinical development department, he started as a CRA, created documents such as research protocols, drafted clinical development plans, and promoted overall management of clinical development, experienced to get approval for multiple drugs through negotiations with regulatory authorities. Additionally, he has experience in evaluating the in-licensed products in advanced clinical development overseas.

Mainly engaged in drug development in the renal field (renal anemia, hyperphosphatemia, secondary hyperparathyroidism) and oncology field (hepatocellular carcinoma, aplastic anemia).
Since 2020, he has been responsible for managing all clinical development operations as Deputy Director of the Clinical Development Center.

Successful people believe that even if they are faced with an unfortunate situation, if they overcome this challenge, they will succeed. And those who never give up until the very end are the ones who succeed.
–Soichiro Honda (Founder; Industry of Honda Giken Co. Ltd)

“Life Purpose”
No matter what difficult situation you face, there is always a way. The experience of success gained by overcoming difficulties leads to confidence that no matter how difficult the situation you face, you can do it.

Graduated from Showa Pharmaceutical University.
Pharmacist

BT Slingsby, MD, PhD, MPH

Executive Chairman & Board Member

BT Slingsby is Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder of Hepalys Pharma. He is also Founder and Managing Director with Catalys Pacific. He founded Catalys Pacific to transform life-sciences innovation using transpacific partnership. Dr. Slingsby leads the company creation efforts for the firm, having started Mineralys Therapeutics, Pathalys Pharma, Kirilys Therapeutics, Aculys Pharma, and Renalys Pharma along with Hepalys as founding CEO and Executive Chairman. Prior to Catalys Pacific, he founded and served as CEO and Executive Director of the Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund — the world’s first public-private fund focused on the development of new medicines for low- and middle-income countries.

BT graduated from Brown University with honors, earned his MPH and PhD from Kyoto University and the University of Tokyo, and received his MD with honors from the George Washington University. In recognition of his contributions to global health, he has been awarded a Foreign Ministry Commendation from the Government of Japan. His work has been featured in the Economist, Financial Times, CNBC Squawk Box, and the New York Times. BT is an author on over 50 peer-reviewed articles on medicine and public health, and formerly served as a Visiting Professor at Keio University, Kyoto University and Osaka University and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Tokyo.

Takeshi Takahashi, MBA

Board Member

Takeshi Takahashi is Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder of Hepalys Pharma. He is also Managing Director with Catalys Pacific. He holds extensive experience in M&As, IPOs, and financing in the healthcare sector. Prior to Catalys Pacific, he worked for the investment banking division of Morgan Stanley for 12 years and played a significant role in over 30 distinguished transactions including, but not limited to, Japanese companies’ acquisitions of U.S. listed companies with an enterprise value of over US$10.0 billion, acquisitions of global healthcare companies with an enterprise value of over US$5.0 billion, and a number of alternative financing transactions. Prior to working for Morgan Stanley, Takeshi was an analyst and a portfolio manager for global and Japan fixed income and managed a $3.0+ billion portfolio in Japan and the U.S. at Merrill Lynch’s asset management division.

Takeshi graduated from Waseda University with a degree in Political Science and Economics, and holds an M.B.A. from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Proficiently bilingual and bicultural.

Nobuo Hanai, PhD

Board Member

Nobuo currently serves as Advisor with Catalys Pacific. Prior to joining Catalys, he was Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer at Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd. (previously known as Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd.) from 2012 to 2018. Thereafter, he served as Representative Director, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in 2018 and as Director and Chairman in 2019. As CEO of Kyowa Kirin, he led the development and launch of numerous innovative drugs including mogamulizumab (Potelligent™) and benralizumab (Fasenra™). Nobuo also successfully realized multiple partnerships with Japanese and global pharmaceutical companies along with several M&A transactions of biotech companies outside Japan. After joining Kyowa Hakko Kogyo in 1976, he led R&D activities of its antibodies. In 2003, he founded BioWa, Inc. in the US in order to license technology related to antibodies, where he served as President and Chief Executive Officer and managed the company. After the inauguration of Kyowa Hakko Kirin, he led the development of various innovative compounds as a global head of R&D. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Tokyo and a doctorate degree from Yamaguchi University.

Rami Suzuki

Auditor

Representative Director and CEO, ARC Therapies Inc.
Managing Director, ARCHIMED GROUP
 
Representative Director and CEO, ARC Therapies Inc. Managing Director, ARCHIMED GROUP After obtaining a Ph.D. in medicine from University College London in 1999 and subsequent postdoctoral research at Imperial College, Rami worked as a venture capitalist in the field of life science in London. She then served Eisai Co., Ltd as a corporate officer in charge of business development, Janssen Pharma K.K. as the division head of Business Development and division head of Medical Affairs and Ferring Pharma KK as the CEO and Representative Director. Prior to her current leadership roles, Rami was the President and Representative Director of Moderna Japan.