Our Board Members

Mr. Krstajic is the former Chief Executive Officer of Wind Mobile, which was sold to Shaw Communications in 2016 for $ 1.6 Billion. Previously he was the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Public Mobile, which was purchased by Telus in 2013. Mr. Krstajic has also served as the President of Bell Mobility and a Senior Vice President of Rogers Communications. In the process, Alek and his team fundamentally changed the wireless market in Canada from a three player market with high prices to a sustainable four player market, providing Canadians with an alternative and competitive pricing and a potential path to better value. As well as being an operator Alek has shown a level of expertise managing regulatory processes to positive outcomes.

Alek sits on a number of boards, and has received numerous awards and recognitions, including Canada’s Top 40 under 40 and a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his service to Canada.

Prof. Best has served as a member of our board of directors since May 2014. Prof. Best also served as our interim President and Chief Executive Office from December 2018 to April 2019.

Prof. Best has experience as the founder and/or Chief Executive Officer of four biotechnology companies between 1992 and 2012, and as a Chairman or board member of major industry bodies including the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) and the US Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO). Since 2012, he has played a pivotal role in building pioneering Digital Healthcare companies – in Pathology with PathXL which was acquired by Philips Healthcare in May 2016 – subsequently with Cumulus Neuroscience (previously BrainWaveBank), which develops EEG tools and analytics for at-home use to validate digital biomarkers, stratify patients for clinical trials and monitor them to facilitate the development of novel drugs for neuro-degenerative disorders. He also served as a director of EvoFem Inc. from November 2015 to December 2017. He was previously an Entrepreneur-In-Residence and Venture Partner with TVM Capital in Munich and Dubai from 2007-2010 and co-founded Par Equity LLP in Edinburgh in 2007.

Prof. Best holds an M.B.A. from the London Business School and an Honorary Doctorate and B.Mus from York University. In 2007, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2008, he was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II and appointed a Visiting Professor of Medicine by the University of Edinburgh. We believe that Prof. Best’s extensive experience in the life science and investment industries qualifies him to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Mr. Siklos is the President of ThomVest Asset Management. Formerly he was the Vice President, Head of Investments for Export Development Canada (“EDC”), where he joined in 2009. Eugene joined EDC in 2009. He was the Vice President, Investments, and was appointed head of its direct investing activities in 2012 and head of its overall investing activities in 2017. During his time there, EDC Investments doubled in size to over C$2 billion in capital committed to its fund and direct investments in the private equity and venture capital segments, while achieving both market returns and mandate objectives for its shareholder, the Government of Canada.

Mr. Siklos holds an MBA degree from Harvard Business School and has over 30 years of financial and business experience, including as a corporate finance professional with Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch.

Eugene has served on numerous Boards of Directors, including Paragon Pharmacies (TSX), Copperleaf Technologies, BTI Systems, and ecobee (Observer).

Dr. Bridger has served as a member of our board of directors since May 2019. Dr. Bridger was also appointed to the board of directors of Expansion Therapeutics serving as an independent director as of January 2022. Dr. Bridger has served as a member of the board of directors of X4 Pharmaceuticals, Inc. since October 2018. From February 2015 to December 2017, Dr. Bridger served as a consultant to Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, where he previously served as the Executive Vice President of Research and Development from January 2013 to February 2015. From October 2013 to October 2015, Dr. Bridger served as a Managing Director at Five Corners Capital Inc. From June 2010 to June 2012, Dr. Bridger served as a venture partner at Venture West Capital Management, a venture capital firm. From November 2006 to December 2007, Dr. Bridger served as Senior Vice President of Research and Development of Genzyme Corporation, a biotechnology company, which was acquired by Sanofi, S.A.

In June 1996, Dr. Bridger co-founded AnorMED Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, and was its Vice President of Research and Development and Chief Scientific Officer from 2000 until its acquisition by Genzyme in November 2006. Dr. Bridger has served on the board of directors of Aquinox Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from 2013 until August 2019. Dr. Bridger holds a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. We believe that Dr. Bridger’s experience as a director and executive officer at numerous biopharmaceutical companies qualifies him to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Mr. Klompas has served as a member of our board of directors since May 2019. Mr. Klompas joined Zymeworks Inc. in March 2007 where he currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Klompas previously served as Chief Financial Officer of Zymeworks Inc. from 2007 until 2022 and also as its Executive Vice President, Business Operations from September 2019 to January 2022. Prior to joining Zymeworks, he worked with KPMG LLP in Canada and the United States, and from 2005 to 2007, with KPMG’s Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and Medical Device M&A Transaction Services practice in Princeton, New Jersey. Prior to that, Mr. Klompas worked with KPMG’s Canadian Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals practice. Mr. Klompas is a Chartered Professional Accountant and is a member of Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia. Mr. Klompas also holds a degree in Microbiology & Immunology from the University of British Columbia. We believe that Mr. Klompas’ experience as a financial executive in the biopharmaceutical industry qualifies him to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Mr. Timothy Wach is Managing Director and Board Member of Taxand since January 2015. Mr. Wach is recognised as a leading Canadian lawyer in taxation and frequently publishes papers for research organisations and academic purposes. In 1989, Mr. Wach joined Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, as an associate and was a partner from 1992 to 2014, where he specialised in mergers, acquisitions, financings and international tax with focus on the private equity and energy sectors. While a partner of Gowlings, Mr. Wach was on the Gowlings Executive Committee and served as leader of the Firm’s National Tax Practice Group and of the Toronto Tax Practice Group.

Mr. Wach also has extensive experience in government relations and tax policy, having twice served in the Tax Policy Branch of the Canadian Department of Finance in Ottawa, most recently as Director of Legislative Development and Chief Legislative Counsel from 2009 to 2011. In that role, he chaired the Interdepartmental Legislation Review Committee, the committee responsible for the preparation of Canada’s federal income tax legislation for submission to Parliament. He also appeared regularly as a witness on behalf of the Department of Finance before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance and the Senate Standing Committee on National Finance when those committees considered tax policy matters.