Board of Directors
Laurence Tisi PhD, CEO
Laurence Tisi, Co-founder of Lumora, has been leading operations since 2003 and CEO since 2007, directing the R&D pipeline and day to day running of the company. He has helped Lumora raise £2.8M via two rounds of equity funding, generated £1.3M in revenue and over £500K in grant money. Laurence is driving the 'collaborative out-licensing' business model of the company, as it expands into the clinical sector. He is a former winner of the 'Marlene Deluca Prize' for the research he performed on bioluminescence whilst at Cambridge University. He is a named inventor on several patents including Lumora's core 'BART' technology.
Christopher Keightley PhD, Chairman
Chris Keightley has over 20 years senior management experience in the life sciences and is presently the managing director of Cambridge Research BioVentures Ltd, an investment fund in the life science sector. He has extensive experience of product development in the clinical diagnostics market where he was a Founder of IQ Bio, subsequently bought by Novo Nordisk. Chris has been instrumental in guiding Lumora's business development, managing Lumora's in-licensing needs and helping Lumora obtain further investment funding.
Ian Johnson, Non-Executive Director
Ian Johnson joined the Board of Lumora in April 2008. From 1999 until 2006, Mr Johnson was Chief Executive Officer of Biotrace International plc, a leading provider of microbiology related testing systems and reagents. Biotrace became a public company in 1993 and was listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange until its acquisition by 3M in December 2006. Mr Johnson was the co-founder of Biotrace and, prior to becoming CEO, served as its Technical Director from 1988 to 1996, and as its Marketing and Development Director from 1996 to 1999. Mr Johnson is also Chairman of Finance Wales and Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively of Evans Analytical Group and AOI Medical Inc. both AIM listed companies. Mr. Johnson studied at University College Cardiff obtaining an Honours Degree and a M.Sc. by thesis in Microbiology. He is a chartered biologist, a member of the Institute of Biology and the Institute of Directors and is the author of numerous publications and patents in the field of rapid microbiology.
Simon Barnes PhD, Director
Simon Barnes is a Managing Partner of Tate & Lyle Ventures. He has a background in life sciences venture capital, first with the London office of Atlas Venture and subsequently with GIMV Venture Capital. He has focused throughout his career on investing in university spin-outs in Europe including Renovo, CropDesign, Aquapharm BioDiscovery and Lumora. Simon was trained as a plant biochemist and has a first class honours degree in Natural Sciences and a PhD from Cambridge University. He spent two years as a NATO Research Fellow at The Rockefeller University in New York. He holds an MBA with Distinction from the Tanaka Business School, Imperial College London.
David Atkinson, Director
David Atkinson is Managing Partner of Tate & Lyle Ventures having had 14 years experience in equity research specifically focused on the food processing industry. David was appointed Managing Director and Head of European Research at NatWest Securities in 1996 and was a member of the Equities Management Committee. In 1998, David co-founded Stamford Partners, a leading investment banking firm providing merger & acquisition and strategic consulting services to the European food industry. Most recently, David has held several senior management positions in the equities operations of Banc of America Securities as well as providing consultancy services to HSBC and the VC industry.
Peter Kohl, Director
Peter Kohl has over 17 years experience in investment banking and alternative finance. He started his career in corporate finance with Credit Suisse in London and thereafter was a Vice-President and M&A/ corporate finance specialist with Salomon Brothers also in London, before starting his own businesses. Mr. Kohl is the founder and chairman of Eagle Advisors Limited, an institutional asset management firm, involved with and advising on hedge funds. In addition, he has helped launch and grow various businesses, including a European long-short equity hedge fund.
During a sabbatical year at Cambridge University, where he was pursuing his interests in biotechnology entrepreneurship, he met with Prof. Murray and Dr Tisi and recognised the great potential of Lumora. He became Lumora’s first financial investor, and has been an enthusiastic backer of the company since. Mr Kohl holds a BSc in Economics from MIT, as well as a MA in Economics from University of Vienna.