Ronald Daniels
BridgeBio PharmaAbout Ronald J. Daniels
Ronald J. Daniels (age 65) is an independent director of BridgeBio Pharma, Inc., serving since February 2020. He is President of Johns Hopkins University (since March 2009), a law and economics scholar, and author or editor of seven books and dozens of scholarly articles. He holds an LLM from Yale University (1988), a JD (1986) and BA (1982) from the University of Toronto .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Pennsylvania | Provost; Professor of Law | Prior to Mar 2009 | Senior academic leadership; governance experience |
| University of Toronto | Dean; James M. Tory Professor of Law | Prior to Mar 2009 | Faculty leadership; legal scholarship |
| T. Rowe Price Funds | Director | Jan 2018 – Apr 2022 | Mutual fund board oversight |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Start/Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johns Hopkins University | President | Since Mar 2009; current | Leads premier science institution |
| Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory | Board of Managers – Member | Current | Governance of APL |
| Johns Hopkins Health System | Executive Committee – Chair | Current | Health system oversight |
Board Governance
- Independence: The Board determined all directors except Neil Kumar, Charles Homcy, and Frank McCormick are independent; Daniels is independent .
- Committee memberships: Compensation Committee member (chair: Fred Hassan; other members: Ali Satvat, Jennifer Cook). Compensation Committee held 4 meetings in 2024 .
- Not on Audit or Nominating & Corporate Governance Committees (Audit chaired by Andrea Ellis; Audit held 6 meetings; Nominating & Corporate Governance held 2 meetings in 2024) .
- Attendance: In 2024 the Board held 9 meetings; all directors then serving attended at least 75% of Board and applicable committee meetings .
- Board leadership: Lead Independent Director (Fred Hassan); Lead Director (Charles Homcy) .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Item | Amount/Policy | Vesting/Terms |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $50,000 (2024) | No meeting or committee fees; retainer covers general availability |
| Director compensation policy | Applicable Jan 1, 2022 – Dec 31, 2025 | Aggregate cap $600,000 per year post-initial election; $1,250,000 in initial election year |
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Item | Value/Detail | Vesting/Terms |
|---|---|---|
| Annual non-statutory stock option grant (2024) | $549,998 grant date fair value | Vests in 3 equal annual installments over 3 years; 10-year term; exercise price = closing price on grant date; full acceleration upon “sale event” if awards not assumed |
| Initial option grant upon first election | $1,200,000 grant date value | Vests in 3 equal annual installments; 10-year term; exercise price = closing price on grant date; acceleration upon “sale event” if not assumed |
| Equity award cap | Aggregate director cash + equity limited per policy (see Fixed Compensation) | Applies annually; designed to limit pay inflation |
Performance metrics: Director equity grants are time-based; no disclosed TSR/financial performance metrics apply to director compensation .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company/Entity | Role | Period | Interlock/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| T. Rowe Price Funds | Director | Jan 2018 – Apr 2022 | No BridgeBio-related interlock disclosed |
| — | — | — | No other public company directorships disclosed for Daniels; no related-party transactions involving Daniels disclosed since Jan 1, 2024 |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Law and economics scholar; senior academic executive leadership at Johns Hopkins, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Toronto .
- Board qualifications cited by BridgeBio: extensive experience as a professor and leader at a premier science institution .
- Independent oversight role on Compensation Committee; Compensation Committee confirmed independent members per Nasdaq Rule 10C-1 .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership | 227,965 shares; <1% of outstanding | |
| Direct common shares | 10,402 shares | |
| Options exercisable within 60 days of Apr 1, 2025 | 217,563 shares | |
| Outstanding options (Dec 31, 2024) | 312,885 options outstanding | |
| Shares outstanding basis | 189,856,023 shares (Apr 1, 2025) | |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for directors under insider trading policy |
Governance Assessment
- Alignment: Director pay is heavily equity-based (2024 mix ≈ $550k options vs $50k cash), supporting shareholder alignment; anti-hedging/pledging policy further aligns interests .
- Independence & engagement: Daniels is independent; board and committee attendance thresholds met; serves on Compensation Committee that met 4 times in 2024 .
- Compensation governance: Compensation Committee uses independent consultants; policy caps director compensation; clawback policy adopted Oct 2, 2023 for executive incentive compensation (broader governance posture) .
- Shareholder signals: 2024 Say-on-Pay approval was 93.6% (for NEOs), indicating general investor support for pay practices; a constructive governance signal for compensation oversight .
- Conflicts/related party: No related-party transactions disclosed involving Daniels since Jan 1, 2024; no consulting or payments to entities affiliated with Daniels reported in 2024 .
- RED FLAGS: None disclosed for Daniels on attendance, hedging/pledging, related-party transactions, or option repricing. Director equity awards are time-based (no performance metrics), which is common but offers limited direct pay-for-performance linkage for directors .