Brett Hagen
About Brett Hagen
Brett Hagen, age 52, is Chief Accounting Officer (CAO) of Kalaris Therapeutics (KLRS), a role he has held since January 2019. He previously served as senior director of finance and accounting at Eloxx Pharmaceuticals, vice president finance and controller at Proteostasis Therapeutics, and controller at BIND Therapeutics. His education includes a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and graduate degrees in accounting (Wright State University) and finance (Suffolk University) . KLRS is pre-revenue and reported a Q3 2025 net loss of $11.9M with $77.0M in cash and short-term investments, underscoring early-stage execution risk typical of clinical biopharma .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eloxx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | Senior Director, Finance & Accounting | Feb 2018–Aug 2018 | Senior finance leadership in public biotech |
| Proteostasis Therapeutics, Inc. | VP Finance & Controller | May 2016–Dec 2017 | Corporate controllership for clinical-stage biotech |
| BIND Therapeutics, Inc. | Controller | Jul 2014–May 2016 | Controller for nanomedicine biotech |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| None disclosed | — | — | No external board or committee roles disclosed for Hagen |
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | $385,320 | $400,000 (annual base compensation set effective Mar 18, 2025) |
| Target Bonus (% of Base) | 35% | 35% |
| Actual Bonus Paid ($) | $397,191 (retention-related bonuses booked in “Bonus”) | Not disclosed |
Performance Compensation
Retention Bonuses and Agreements
| Bonus/Agreement | Date | Amount ($) | Key Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retention bonus | Feb 2024 | 101,720 | Continued employment through Sep 30, 2024 |
| Retention bonus | May 2024 | 50,680 | Continued employment through Sep 30, 2024 |
| Special retention bonus | Approved Apr 11/May 31, 2024 | 34,000 | Paid upon consummation of Merger/continued employment |
| Monthly retention payments | Commenced Oct 1, 2024 | 16,953 per month | Through later of Mar 31, 2025 or Merger date; payable even if terminated without cause before such date |
| Severance Acknowledgment/Release retention payout | Mar 18, 2025 | 51,381.17 | Paid at closing with severance acknowledgment |
Notes:
- AlloVir’s annual bonus program (pre-merger) tied to corporate goals across R&D, regulatory, finance and general corporate metrics; no 2023 bonuses earned due to missed corporate goals . KLRS 2025 bonuses are discretionary against strategic, financial and operating objectives; specific metric weightings not disclosed .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership: 1,915 KLRS common shares held directly (less than 1% of outstanding) as of June 25, 2025 .
- Insider trading policy prohibits hedging, short sales, derivatives, and pledging of company stock, reducing misalignment risk from collateralized holdings .
Outstanding Equity Awards at Dec 31, 2024 (pre-merger, AlloVir legacy)
| Grant date | Options exercisable (#) | Options unexercisable (#) | Exercise Price ($) | Expiration | RSUs unvested (#) | RSUs MV ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/02/2023 (Option) | 2,163 | 2,781 | 152.95 | 02/02/2033 | — | — |
| 02/02/2023 (RSU) | — | — | — | — | 1,498 | 14,471 |
| 08/16/2022 (RSU) | — | — | — | — | 380 | 3,671 |
| 07/01/2022 (Option) | 476 | 370 | 94.99 | 07/01/2032 | — | — |
| 07/01/2022 (RSU) | — | — | — | — | 199 | 1,922 |
| 01/18/2022 (Option) | 1,272 | 578 | 210.45 | 01/18/2032 | — | — |
| 01/18/2022 (RSU) | — | — | — | — | 237 | 2,289 |
| 01/19/2021 (Option) | 1,324 | 88 | 969.45 | 01/19/2031 | — | — |
| 01/19/2021 (RSU) | — | — | — | — | 47 | 454 |
| 07/29/2020 (Option) | 1,886 | — | 391.00 | 07/29/2030 | — | — |
Key equity events at merger:
- Immediately prior to closing, all unexercised AlloVir options with exercise price ≥$92.00 were canceled for no consideration; unvested RSUs were fully accelerated (Hagen’s accelerated RSUs totaled 1,098 shares) .
- Vesting mechanics for legacy awards: options vested 25% at one year then quarterly; RSUs vested 25% at one year then quarterly .
Employment Terms
| Provision | Current (KLRS) – Offer Letter Amendment (Apr 15, 2025) | Prior (AlloVir) – Executive Severance & CoC Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | $400,000 | $385,320 (2024) |
| Target bonus | 35% of base | 35% of base |
| Severance (no CoC) | 9 months base + up to 9 months COBRA; requires timely release and covenant compliance | If terminated without cause/for good reason within window: 12 months base + target bonus + COBRA; accelerated vesting; release and covenant compliance required |
| Severance (within CoC window; double-trigger) | 12 months base + 100% target bonus + up to 12 months COBRA + time-based equity acceleration; release/covenants required | Within 3 months prior to/12 months post CoC: 12 months base + target bonus + COBRA + equity acceleration |
| Good Reason / Cause definitions | Detailed (salary cut >10%, material duty change, relocation >50 miles, etc.) | Policy references post-termination restrictive covenants; requires release |
| At-will employment | Explicit | — |
Other governance and policies:
- Compensation recovery (clawback) policy for restatements (3-year lookback) adopted Oct 26, 2023 .
- Insider trading and prohibitions on hedging/pledging derivatives .
Additional Data Points and Signals
- 2024 total compensation (AlloVir): Salary $385,320; Bonus $397,191 (retention-related); Other compensation $13,800 (401(k) match); Total $796,311 .
- Section 16 compliance: One late Form 4 (transaction Dec 27, 2023; filed Jan 2, 2024) .
- Beneficial ownership by 5%+ holder: Samsara BioCapital L.P. controls ~61% of KLRS; KLRS is a “controlled company” and uses certain Nasdaq exemptions .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Direct personal ownership is small (1,915 shares, less than 1%), though time-based equity acceleration exists in change-of-control and pre-merger RSU accelerations; prohibitions on hedging/pledging and a clawback policy reduce misalignment and tail risks .
- Retention and selling pressure: Multiple retention bonuses in 2024 and severance protections suggest reduced near-term voluntary turnover risk; equity option overhang was largely canceled or accelerated at merger, lowering forced selling risk from high-strike options .
- CoC economics: Double-trigger terms (12 months base + 100% target bonus + COBRA + equity acceleration) are moderate and standard for non-CEO officers; they provide downside protection without excessive golden parachute features (no disclosed gross-ups) .
- Execution context: KLRS is pre-revenue with $77.0M liquidity and ongoing clinical trials; as CAO, Hagen’s role in financial reporting and controls is critical amid controlled-company governance and recent restatement-focused clawback policy, with only a minor late filing noted .