PureTech Health plc (LSE: PRTC) (“PureTech”), a clinical stage biotherapeutics company dedicated to discovering, developing and commercialising highly differentiated medicines for devastating diseases, today announced the appointment of biotech entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw to its board of directors. Ms Shaw is an industry trailblazer who has spent her career surpassing societal expectations as the founder and chairperson of India’s largest and a leading global biopharmaceutical company, Biocon Limited. Driven by a commitment to provide access to life-saving medicines worldwide, Ms Shaw brings extensive experience in biotherapeutics, strategic leadership, financial and business development and a dedication to improving patients’ lives to PureTech’s board of industry leaders.

“Kiran is a tremendously successful entrepreneur in healthcare and widely recognised as one of the most powerful and influential women in business. She also has a keen interest in improving the health of people around the world,” said Christopher Viehbacher, chairman of PureTech’s board of directors. “Kiran brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to PureTech’s board as we enter this next exciting chapter of growth.”

Ms Shaw is a pioneer of the biotechnology industry in India and a noted philanthropist who has devoted herself to building a sustainable model for delivering top-quality diabetes and cancer care at affordable prices. Since she founded Biocon, she has guided its growth from a leading bioenzymes company of India to a fully integrated and globally recognised multibillion-dollar biopharma company with extensive research efforts in oncology, diabetes and autoimmune disease. In addition to her leadership of Biocon, Ms Shaw chairs the Indian State of Karnataka’s Vision Group on Biotechnology and is on the Advisory Council of the Indian government’s Department of Biotechnology. She serves on the Board of Trustees at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Keck Graduate Institute (KGI). Ms Shaw is an independent director on the board of Infosys and Narayana Health. She is also an elected international member of the prestigious US National Academy of Engineering (NAE).

Ms Shaw founded the Mazumdar Shaw Cancer Centre in Bangalore, which focuses on delivering affordable care. She is also the driving force behind the Biocon Foundation, which runs primary healthcare clinics to reach India’s rural poor. Ms Shaw has received multiple industry accolades including being named among Forbes’ World’s 100 Most Powerful Women and World’s Self-Made Women Billionaires, Fortune’s Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Asia-Pacific, TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World, FierceBiotech’s World’s 25 Most Influential People in Biopharma, Scientific American’s The Worldview 100 List of the most influential visionaries, Foreign Policy’s 100 Leading Global Thinkers and the Medicine Maker Power List, a ranking of the 100 most influential people in medicine from across the globe. Ms Shaw was also declared the EY World Entrepreneur of 2020. She is a recipient of several national honours including the Padma Shri (1989) and Padma Bhushan (2005), two of India’s most prestigious civilian awards, the Knight of the Legion d’Honneur, France (2016) and The Order of Australia (2020). Ms Shaw has a graduate degree in zoology from Bangalore University and has earned a master’s degree in malting and brewing from Ballarat College, Melbourne University. She has received honorary doctorates from several institutions globally.

“I am thrilled to join the luminaries on PureTech’s board at a time when the company is poised for rapid growth building on the many successes of recent years,” Ms Shaw said. “With a unique and extremely productive approach towards the development of new medicines, the PureTech team has developed an impressive track record of pioneering new therapies, all of which could be transformational across a number of fields. With exciting programmes within its Wholly Owned Pipeline, PureTech has the potential to be truly disruptive in addressing serious diseases where there is significant need.”

“Kiran is an entrepreneur and visionary who is credited with the conception, development and success of a highly respected and important biopharma enterprise,” said Daphne Zohar, founder and chief executive officer of PureTech. “Her proven track record of entrepreneurial ingenuity and integrity along with her demonstrated business leadership position her as an excellent addition to PureTech’s board of industry leaders. We are excited to work with her as we continue on our growth trajectory.”

On joining the board, Ms Shaw will become a member of the board’s Remuneration and Nomination Committees.