Board of Directors
The Board are responsible for International Biotechnology Trust plc. The Board of five non-executive Directors sets the Company’s strategy and determines and monitors the Company’s investment objectives and policy. They meet formally four times a year, but also meet informally on other occasions as required. As is appropriate, they have delegated various functions to other parties, the performance of which are regularly reviewed.
Alan Clifton (Chairman)
Alan was appointed as a Chairman to the Company with effect from 13 April 2012 and had previously been appointed a non-executive Director of the Company on 21 February 2001. Mr Clifton was previously the Managing Director of Morley Fund Management (now Aviva Investors) the asset management arm of Aviva plc, the UK’s largest insurance group. He is currently Chairman of JPMorgan Japanese Smaller Companies Trust plc and of Schroder UK Growth Fund plc and a director of several other investment companies.
John Aston, OBE
John was chief financial officer at Astex Therapeutics Ltd between January 2007 and May 2010. Before joining Astex, John was chief financial officer of Cambridge Antibody Technology for ten years. Prior to this, John was a director in investment banking with Schroders in London and previously worked for British Technology Group and Price Waterhouse. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant and has a degree in Mathematics from Cambridge University. John is also a non-executive director of the Polar Capital Healthcare Growth and Income Trust plc and Regenerative Medicine Assets Ltd.
Véronique Bouchet
Dr Bouchet is the Founder Director of Novudel Associates, a lifesciences consulting and coaching consultancy company. Prior to this position she was Director of Corporate Strategy and Head of Venture Capital Relations at AstraZeneca PLC. In addition Veronique has held a variety of international roles in the healthcare industry across several therapeutic areas and functions, including drug development, product strategy, medical marketing, business development, corporate strategy and mergers and acquisitions, at AstraZeneca in the UK and Grunenthal GmbH in Germany. She has also worked in venture capital, as an investment manager with the Rothschild Bioscience Unit in London. She is a Trustee of Breast Cancer Campaign UK and a member of the Council of Queen Mary, University of London.
She has an MB BS from St Bartholomews's Hospital Medical School, holds a BSc in Psychology from University College London, and a Diploma from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. She has been awarded an MBA from INSEAD, has a Diploma (Distinction) from the Coaching Academy UK, and has been awarded the Institute of Directors' Diploma in Company Direction (Distinction).
David Clough
He was appointed as a non-executive Director of the Company on 25 February 2004. Dr Clough was Director of Research at Roche in the UK between 1986 and 1999. He was responsible for over 300 staff with departments covering chemistry, biology and pre-clinical development.
Alex Hammond-Chambers
He was appointed as a non-executive Director of the Company on 21 February 2001. After graduating in Economics at Cambridge University in 1964, Mr Hammond- Chambers joined the investment management firm of Ivory & Sime in Edinburgh, Scotland. Following his formal training period, he became the fund manager of British Assets Trust and Edinburgh American Assets Trust. He became a partner in 1969 and in 1985 Chairman of Ivory & Sime PLC. From 1984 to 1987 he served as a governor of the NASD. In 1991 he retired from Ivory & Sime PLC and has since pursued a second career as a professional non-executive director. He is currently Chairman of Aurora Investment Trust plc, and Hansa Trust PLC. He is a director of Montanaro European Smaller Companies Trust plc.