Derek Small

Derek is founding Managing Director of Luson Bioventures, a biopharmaceutical venture creation firm founded in 2007.  He is also currently Co-founder and Executive Chairman of Gate Neurosciences, a Luson portfolio company focused on diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) launched in 2018.  Of the other Luson portfolio new ventures, Derek has been co-founder and CEO of Assembly Biosciences (Nasdaq: ASMB); Founding CEO of Naurex (acq. by Allergan in 2015 – leading to a spin out of Aptinyx/Nasdaq: APTX), and other portfolio companies.  Derek has partnered with many top tier life science investors to build these companies in the private and public settings, raising >US$1 billion to date for these ventures.  The companies have also established global and regional partnerships with major pharmaceutical companies including Abbvie, Allergan, Eli Lilly, Jansen, Lundbeck, Takeda, and others totaling >US$3 billion to date. In addition to these US ventures, Derek has been dedicated to developing innovative drugs in China since 2009.  In 2016 he launched Assembly China in Shanghai and Beijing to advance novel drugs for Hepatitis B, and served as CEO/GM through multiple new clinical development programs and a China partnership with BeiGene in 2020 totaling over US$500M. Derek also serves on the board of directors for Biocrossroads, a non-profit life sciences organization based in Indianapolis, IN, and other private companies.  Derek graduated from Franklin College with a BS in Business Administration, and studied at Harlaxton College in England.  Derek is most dedicated to his family – his wife of over 20 years, and three amazing children.