Coulter Partners strengthens leadership at iOnctura with placement of Board Chair
London, 10 April 2025 – Coulter Partners, the global expert building leadership teams for Health, Science and Technology innovation businesses, successfully completed a search assignment for iOnctura and is pleased to announce the placement of Dr. Mark Velleca as Chair of the Board of Directors.
iOnctura is a clinical-stage precision oncology company combating neglected and hard-to-treat cancers with a pipeline of first-in-class small molecules.
Dr. Mark Velleca is currently the CEO and Board Chair of Black Diamond Therapeutics (BDTX) and also serves as Board Chair of Myeloid Therapeutics. Mark served as CEO of G1 Therapeutics (GTHX) until 2021. Whilst at G1 Therapeutics, he took the company public and led the development of its first therapy (COSELA®) from IND filing to FDA approval. Mark was a co-founder and Senior Vice President of CGI Pharmaceuticals, where he managed the company from its inception through clinical trials of multiple drug candidates. After Gilead Sciences acquired CGI, he served as a Senior Advisor to Gilead in R&D Strategy and Corporate Development. Earlier in his career, Mark was an attending physician at Yale New Haven Hospital and on the faculty of the Yale University School of Medicine. Mark earned an M.D. and Ph.D. from Washington University in St. Louis and a B.S. from Yale University.
Dr. Velleca commented, “I have been following iOnctura’s bold mission to redefine the PI3Kδ landscape. Roginolisib is the first highly selective PI3Kδ inhibitor in development that overcomes the selectivity liabilities of prior drugs for this promising target. I look forward to working with Catherine, the leadership team, and the board as the Company accelerates development of this program.”
Catherine Pickering, CEO and co-founder of iOnctura, said:
Following our significant financing round in June last year, we continue to build a world-class leadership team to take iOnctura through into its next phase and beyond. Our team is carefully selected. Mark has significant healthcare and corporate experience which will be invaluable as we progress our innovative pipeline through clinical development.
Reflecting on the collaboration with Coulter Partners, Dr Pickering added:
Coulter Partners impressed us by approaching this search with a team-building mindset, deeply engaging with our leadership to understand our vision and the needs of iOnctura. Their collaborative and insightful approach, coupled with creative problem-solving, was helpful in finding a Chair who perfectly complements our team and will guide us through our next phase.
