Hitesh Thakrar

hitesh

Position

Board Member

Bio

Hitesh Thakrar is an experienced investor in the technology sector, having spent over 25 years investing in public equities in the life sciences, information technology and innovation sectors.

Since 2015, he has moved into early stage venture investing. Hitesh is currently a Partner at Syncona Limited (a Wellcome Trust backed early stage venture fund), a Governance Board Member of KQ Labs at the Francis Crick Institute, an accelerator with the Turing supporting next generation businesses in data science and life sciences, and the Chair of the Investment Committee for Newable Ventures (a pre-Series A deep tech fund).

Hitesh is also an advisor to UKRI’s Science and Technology Funding Council (SFTC) that helps early stage companies spin out from UK universities, He recently joined as a Trustee of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Charity. Previous NED roles include work with Desktop Genetics and Tropic Biosciences, both companies using CRISPR technology in gene editing.  

Prior to 2015, Hitesh has worked at various public market institutions in global equity research and fund management including at ADIA (Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund), JP Morgan, Aviva Group, Dresdner Bank and New Star Asset Management.

Hitesh has a degree in chemistry from Kings College, London, an MBA from Cranfield University and a CFA from the American Association of Investment Analysts and has previously held a position as Innovation Fellow at the University of Cambridge.