David Collier, M.D., is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Pharmaceutical Development and Managing Director of Presidio Partners.
As CEO of Velocity Pharmaceutical Development (VPD) since its inception in 2011, David is pioneering a new business model for the development of promising drug candidates. VPD acquires the rights to individual therapeutic drug candidates from pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, and academia, and invests in their development through clinical proof-of-concept (generally phase 2). Following proof-of-concept, VPD seeks to sell each drug asset to a major pharmaceutical company. VPD is structured as a holding company, owning a portfolio of virtual companies, each of which develops a single drug candidate, all managed by a single team. This development team includes several highly experienced former Chief Medical Officers from the biotechnology industry.
David joined Presidio Partners in 2001 to focus on investments in biotechnology companies developing drugs through clinical trials across many different therapeutic areas. Examples include Ardelyx (minimally-absorbed drugs acting on the GI tract), Auspex Pharmaceuticals (Huntington’s Disease), and Arcion Therapeutics (neuropathic pain). Before joining Presidio Partners, David was a Managing Director at Burrill & Co., a private merchant bank focused exclusively on life science companies, where he played a leading role in the management of the company’s life science venture capital funds. Earlier in his career, he was Assistant Vice President at First Options of Chicago, where he directed a group of traders and managed a large portfolio of futures and options.
David holds an M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, an M.B.A. from the Wharton School, and a B.A. in Physics from Wesleyan University. David is an instrument-rated private pilot. Some of his other interests include skiing, hiking, playing with his kids, and turning over rocks and logs in search of noteworthy critters.
