About us

The business

Oxford Biotrans is a University of Oxford spin-out company supported by over 20 years of research by Dr Luet Lok Wong from the Department of Chemistry. The company will develop and commercialise enzymatic process technologies that yield high-value chemical compounds.

Our processes bring the following benefits:

Yield natural-grade products from natural feedstocks.
Offer security of supply by using readily-available feedstocks.
Realise production cost advantages, deriving from:
- Selectivity and activity of our proprietary, bespoke biocatalysts.
- Ability to use low-cost feedstocks.

They are environmentally friendly process that avoid the harsh reagents and conditions of many synthetic processes, thus producing less chemical waste and using less energy.

Moreover, we can provide routes to molecules not easily accessed by any other means due to the pronounced ability of our catalysts to functionalise positions of a molecular framework that would ordinarily be considered inactive.

The board

Jason King

Executive Director

Jason has twenty years’ start-up/SME experience covering global business development, business leadership and project management, primarily in the catalysis, chemicals and advanced materials sectors. Previously Jason was Vice President for Business Development with Avantium Technologies in the Netherlands and then Business Development Director of hte AG in Germany before leading the start-up of MatOx Ltd, an Oxford-based IP development and commercialization business focused on advanced materials, and working with biomaterials company Giltech Ltd as director of business development. Jason is a specialist in early-stage technology development/commercialization, collaborative research and development partnerships and technology licensing. He has an MA in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge and a PhD in chemistry from the same.

Matthew Hodges

Executive Director

Matthew’s background is in developing business strategies and innovative products to match commercial demand or disrupt established markets. Matthew has worked with Oxford Biotrans since 2015 coordinating its multi-disciplinary R&D and manufacturing activities. Previously, Matthew has worked as a strategic consultant at Mars & Co, the global strategic, business, and operational consulting firm. He has a BA in Biological Sciences and a DPhil in Molecular Biology and Genomics from the University of Oxford.

George Robinson

Non-Executive Director

George is a Partner and co-Founder of Sloane Robinson LLP, an investment management business which invests in listed equities globally with a particular focus on Asian and Emerging Markets. Prior to that he worked for 15 years in Asia, initially for John Swire and Sons in Hong Kong, Korea and the Philippines, and then for Asian based stockbroker WI Carr in Korea, Thailand and Hong Kong where he was Director of Regional Research. George is an active investor in early stage technology and biotech companies with a particular focus on Oxford spin- outs, and is a founding Partner of Technikos, a private equity partnership which invests in spin-out companies from the Oxford Institute of Biomedical Engineering. He is an investor in a number of Oxford based companies and a partner of Oxford Investments Consultants LLP which advises the Oxford Technology and Innovations EIS Fund. He is an honorary fellow of Keble College, Oxford from where he graduated with an MA in Engineering Science, and is a member of Oxford University Endowment Investment Committee.

Tassos Konstantinou

Non-Executive Director

Tassos joined IP Group in January 2019 and specialises in the life science sector. Prior to joining IP Group, Tassos was a business development executive at CRUK Commercial Partnerships (ex CRT) where he led the commercialisation of drug discovery programmes to pharma and helped set up new companies. He has experience in technology transfer both in the States and the UK and has also held an investment analyst role with SR One, GSK’s venture capital arm. Tassos did a PhD in molecular oncology at the University of Oxford and a postdoc at the University of Chicago.

Steve Silvey

Observer

Steve is a Senior Investment Manager at Oxford University Innovation, the commercialisation arm of the University of Oxford, working with researchers, investors, entrepreneurs and corporates to foster a world-leading innovation ecosystem with Oxford University at its heart. Steve manages the University’s equity interests in its portfolio of life sciences spin outs, covering a broad range of disciplines including biotech, med-tech, and digital health. Steve joined Oxford University Innovation in 2018 from an ASX listed IP investment firm specialising in university spin out creation, and has more than 20 years of governance, executive and investing experience in early stage and high growth companies. He studied biology, has an MBA and is a Chartered Accountant.

James Mallinson

Observer

James is Director at Oxford Spin-Out Equity Management (OSEM). James joined Isis Innovation Ltd in April 2003 to manage the University’s equity stakes in spin-out companies and joined Oxford Spin-out Equity Management (OSEM) on its formation in August 2008. Prior to Isis, James worked in the private equity group at Abbey National Treasury Services as a member of a team responsible for commitments of £1.9bn. He has also been a member of the Strategic Advisory Board of funds managed by Advent Venture Partners and Avlar BioVentures. James gained his first degree in Engineering Science at the University of Oxford, following which he trained and worked as a software engineer, initially with Marconi Underwater Systems. He gained an MBA from Cranfield in 1990 and has over 17 years of experience in venture capital as both investor and adviser.