Erica Whittaker

Erica is Vice President & Head of UCB Ventures. She is a Board Director for five UCB Ventures portfolio companies (Rinri Therapeutics, ExeVir, Neurona, Splice Bio, and Iris Medicine) and a former Board Director for four exited portfolio companies (EsoBiotec, Syndesi, StrideBio and Ally Therapeutics). Erica began her career at UCB in 2010 initially in Research Strategy and Corporate Strategy roles, and later as Head of Market Access and Pricing for the European Commercial Operations. Prior to joining UCB, Erica spent 10 years as a top-ranked biotechnology equity analyst for Merrill Lynch in London (1999-2009), following several years in Business Development in biotech companies. Erica received BA degrees in Biology and in Comparative Literature from Brown University (Rhode Island USA). She travelled to the UK on a Marshall Scholarship, obtaining a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of Edinburgh, and later an MBA from Heriot-Watt University Business School in Edinburgh. In her spare time, Erica enjoys running, cycling and family holidays.