David Szekeres
About David Szekeres
David Szekeres (age 51) is the independent Chair of the Board at GRI Bio, Inc., serving since April 2023. He brings 20+ years of life sciences experience spanning finance, M&A, legal counsel, and operating leadership, including COO/Head of Finance roles and public-company board service. He holds a B.A. in criminology, law and society from UC Irvine and a J.D. from Duke University School of Law .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connect Biopharma Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: CNTB) | President | Current | Public-company operating leadership; sector adjacency to GRI |
| Heron Therapeutics, Inc. | Chief Operating Officer & Head of Finance | Mar 2016 – Aug 2023 | Led finance/operations in commercial-stage biotech |
| Regulus Therapeutics Inc. | Chief Business Officer; Principal Financial & Accounting Officer; General Counsel | 2014 – 2016 | Multifunctional executive across BD/finance/legal |
| Life Technologies Corporation | Head of Mergers & Acquisitions | 2008 – Feb 2014 | Corporate development leadership through sale to Thermo Fisher |
| Edico Genome Inc. | Director | Mar 2014 – 2018 | Board oversight through sale to Illumina |
| Patara Pharma | Director | Oct 2014 – 2018 | Board oversight through sale to Roivant Sciences |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Nature |
|---|---|---|
| Sanford Burnham Prebys | Director | Non-profit biomedical research institute board |
| CureMatch | Director | Precision medicine/tech board |
| Animantis | Director | Company board (biotech/tech) |
| Colossal Biosciences | Executive Advisory Board Member | Advisory role in de-extinction/genomics |
Board Governance
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Board leadership | Chair of the Board; CEO and Chair roles separated; Szekeres is non-executive Chair |
| Independence | Board determined Szekeres is independent; Company has an independent Chair |
| Committees | Audit (Chair), Compensation (Member); not listed on Nominating & Corporate Governance |
| Audit expertise | Designated “audit committee financial expert” (SEC Item 407); “financially sophisticated” per Nasdaq |
| Attendance | Board held 5 meetings in FY2024; committees held 11; each director attended 100% of meetings |
| Annual meeting attendance | No directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders |
| Governance policies | Code of Conduct overseen by Nominating & Corporate Governance; Insider Trading Policy prohibits hedging and pledging |
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Component | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Fees Earned or Paid in Cash | $91,000 | Director compensation table |
| Program terms | Board annual cash retainer | $40,000 | Non-employee director program |
| Program terms | Committee annual cash retainers | Audit $7,500; Compensation $6,000; Nominating $5,000 | Directors may elect stock options in lieu of cash |
| Program terms | Chair retainers | Board Chair $30,000; Audit Chair $15,000; Compensation Chair $12,000; Nominating Chair $10,000 | Options may be elected instead |
Performance Compensation
| Grant/Plan Element | Shares/Options | Vesting | Date/Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial director equity on joining | Formula: $100,000 / closing price | Quarterly over 3 years | Program design (when appointed/elected) |
| Annual director equity | Formula: $50,000 / closing price | Quarterly over 1 year | Program design (annual meeting) |
| 2024 annual meeting grant | None | N/A | No director options granted at 2024 Annual Meeting |
| January 2025 catch-up grant (annual) | Chair: 3,055 options; Other directors: 1,782 options | 100% vested at grant | Granted in Jan 2025 |
| Expected 2025 awards – Szekeres | 10,276 options | 6,933 vest at grant; 3,343 vest quarterly over 1 year | Subject to service; upon shareholder approval of plan amendment |
| Plan features | No repricing without shareholder approval | N/A | A&R 2018 Plan terms |
Performance Metric Structure (directors)
- Director equity awards are time-based (quarterly vesting) with no disclosed performance metrics for director grants; the A&R 2018 Plan permits performance-based awards, but expected director grants for 2025 are time-based .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Current public company role: President of Connect Biopharma (NASDAQ: CNTB) .
- Prior public company board service: Edico Genome (sold to Illumina) and Patara Pharma (sold to Roivant) .
- Non-profit/private boards: Sanford Burnham Prebys, CureMatch, Animantis; advisory at Colossal Biosciences .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Financial oversight and audit literacy: designated audit committee financial expert; deep CFO/COO experience .
- Transactions/M&A: led M&A at Life Technologies through sale to Thermo Fisher .
- Legal/compliance: former General Counsel (Regulus); Duke Law J.D. .
- Industry experience: extensive biopharma operating leadership across development/commercial .
Equity Ownership
| As of | Beneficial Ownership | Composition | % of Outstanding |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 30, 2025 | 3,072 shares | Options exercisable within 60 days; no common shares listed | <1% (company notes less than one percent) |
| Dec 31, 2024 (outstanding options snapshot) | 22 | Aggregate shares underlying outstanding options (count) | N/A (program table; no valuation) |
| Policy alignment | Hedging/pledging prohibited | Applies to directors/officers/employees and controlled accounts | Insider Trading Policy |
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent Board Chair; Szekeres designated audit financial expert and chairs audit, bolstering oversight of financial reporting and controls .
- 100% meeting attendance in 2024 indicates high engagement; committee structure and charters disclosed and compliant with SEC/Nasdaq rules .
- Director equity in January 2025 and expected 2025 options suggest movement toward equity-based alignment after a cash-heavy 2024, with no repricing permitted under the plan .
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Watch items / potential investor-confidence signals
- No directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting (virtual format), which some investors may view as a responsiveness gap; monitor 2025 attendance .
- Low personal share ownership (beneficial ownership <1%; largely options) may raise “skin-in-the-game” questions; expected grants will partially address alignment if retained and not sold post-vesting .
- Multiple external commitments (President of CNTB plus several boards) create potential overboarding/time-allocation risk; no specific conflicts disclosed, and related-party transactions are governed by audit committee policy .
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Compensation structure observations
- 2024 director compensation was entirely cash for Szekeres ($91,000); the 2025 catch-up and expected option grants increase at-risk/equity-linked pay, consistent with alignment objectives .
- Independent compensation consultant (Anderson Pay Advisors) engaged by Compensation Committee in 2024, with independence assessment completed; good governance practice .
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Related-party transactions
- Company maintains a formal RPT policy and audit committee oversight; no director-specific related-party transactions disclosed for Szekeres .