Simon Bennett
Executive Director
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DPhil University of Oxford
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Wellcome Trust Research, University of Oxford
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Honorary Clinical Lecturer, Imperial College London
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Over 80 commercial deals
Simon Bennett – Dr Simon Bennett has over twenty-five years of experience in the bio-pharma industry. His senior management experience ranges from start-up through to IPO and trade sale, with responsibilities covering all aspects of business and corporate development. Simon has represented a range of bio-pharma companies, including large and mid-sized pharma such as BMS, Menarini and Beijing Tide Pharma, largely supporting business development and licensing, and scouting activities. He also mentors and advises early-stage businesses and management teams, primarily in biotech, genomics and specialty pharma. Simon’s network spans the globe, having been involved in around 80 commercial deals across Europe, North America, Australasia, Japan, Russia/CIS and South America.
Prior to moving into industry, Simon was a Wellcome Trust Research Fellow at the University of Oxford and an Honorary Clinical Lecturer at Imperial College London. He has held senior management positions at a number of start-up and early-stage companies. In 1997 he joined Oxford spin-out Oxagen in its infancy and established and built its franchise in Women’s Health, formerly as Programme Director and later as Director of Business Development. In 2003, he joined next generation sequencing company Solexa where, as Business Development Director, he was responsible for all commercial activities and external communications leading up to the reverse takeover in 2005 of Nasdaq-listed Lynx Therapeutics to form Solexa Inc. which was later acquired by Illumina; a technology that today forms the mainstay of Illumina’s $75 billion business.
He has published widely, particularly in the field of complex disease genetics, and has co-authored four patent applications.