Partner, Vivo Ventures
Former Chairman and CEO, Nextwave Pharmaceuticals
Mahendra G. Shah, Ph.D. is currently a venture partner at Vivo
Ventures, a health care focused venture fund. From 2005 to 2009 he
was the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Nextwave Pharmaceuticals, a
pediatric focused specialty pharmaceutical company. From 1993 to
2003 he was Chairman and CEO of First Horizon Pharmaceuticals, a
publicly traded specialty pharmaceutical company, where he raised
over $200 million in public market and built a very profitable
company with sales over $150 million. The company was sold to
Shinogi Pharmaceuticals for $1.4 billion.
From 1991 to 1999 he was Vice President of E. J. Financial
Enterprises, Inc., which manages a fund that invests in health care
companies. He previously served on the Boards of Unimed
Pharmaceuticals, Introgen Therapeutics Inc., Inpharmakon, Inc.,
Protomed Inc., Structural Bioinformatics Inc., and Zarix Inc. From
1987 to 1991 he was the Senior Director of New Business Development
with Fujisawa USA (Astellas). Prior to that time he worked in
various scientific and management positions with Schering-Plough
and Bristol Myers-Squibb.
Dr. Shah received his Ph.D. in Industrial Pharmacy from St.
John’s University and his Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Pharmacy
from L.M. College of Pharmacy in Gujarat, India.