Todd Chappell
About Todd Chappell
Todd Chappell is Chief Operating Officer at Korro Bio (KRRO), serving since the November 2023 merger; he was Legacy Korro COO from August 2023 and previously SVP, Strategy & Portfolio Planning from March 2021. He is 51, holds an M.B.A. from Boston University and a B.S. in Biology from UCLA, with prior operating and venture-building roles across Rasio Therapeutics, Perceptive Navigation, BioHealth Innovation, Shape Pharmaceuticals, and CombinatoRx . During his tenure, the company reported negative net income of $81.2M in 2023 and $83.6M in 2024, and disclosed pay-versus-performance TSR values of $25 (2023) and $20 (2024), reflecting development-stage risk and equity volatility .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Korro Bio (Legacy Korro) | SVP, Strategy & Portfolio Planning | Mar 2021–Aug 2023 | Portfolio planning; advanced early pipeline strategy |
| Korro Bio (Legacy Korro) | Chief Operating Officer | Aug 2023–Nov 2023 | Operational leadership pre-merger |
| Korro Bio (post-merger) | Chief Operating Officer | Nov 2023–Present | Enterprise-wide operations across OPERA RNA editing platform and programs |
| Rasio Therapeutics | Chief Executive Officer | Jun 2019–Mar 2021 | Built and led early-stage drug development company |
| Perceptive Navigation, LLC | Chief Executive Officer | Jun 2015–May 2019 | Led medical device ventures; product advancement |
| BioHealth Innovation, Inc. | Entrepreneur-in-Residence | Not disclosed | Managed portfolio of start-up pharma and medtech companies |
| Shape Pharmaceuticals (HealthCare Ventures portfolio) | VP, Operations | Not disclosed | Oversaw day-to-day operations for HDAC inhibitor program for CTCL |
| CombinatoRx, Inc. | Executive Director, New Products | Not disclosed | Advanced three programs from assay stage into human studies |
External Roles
- No public-company board or external directorships disclosed for Chappell in KRRO’s filings reviewed .
Fixed Compensation
- Chappell was not a named executive officer (NEO) in KRRO’s 2024 proxy disclosure; individual base salary, target bonus %, and actual bonus for him are not disclosed in the latest DEF 14A .
- Company program context: 2024 NEO base salaries and bonus targets were set by the compensation committee using market benchmarks, with target bonuses tied to pipeline, OPERA platform, and corporate development goals .
Performance Compensation
- Company annual incentive plan metrics for 2024 covered pipeline progress, OPERA platform development, and corporate development; overall achievement was determined at 95% of target for NEOs .
- Specific metric weightings, individual targets, and payouts for Chappell are not disclosed in KRRO’s proxy .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Data Point | Value | As-of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 3 beneficial ownership | 0 shares | Event date 11/03/2023; filed 11/07/2023 | |
| Role at filing | Officer (COO) | 11/07/2023 | |
| Lock-up agreement post-merger | 180 days from 11/03/2023 closing (executives included) | 11/06/2023 | |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for all employees and directors (no margin or pledges) | Insider Trading Policy filed with 2024 10-K |
Notes:
- Principal stockholder and officer ownership table in the 2025 proxy does not list Chappell among disclosed Directors/NEOs, so an updated beneficial ownership count for him is not provided there .
- Securities authorized under equity plans at FY2024 year-end: 1,256,337 options outstanding (WAEP $25.42) and 788,590 shares available for future issuance; relevant to dilution and future award capacity .
Employment Terms
| Term | Details | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Indemnification | Company entered indemnification agreements with executive officers at merger closing | |
| At-will employment & executive agreements | Company executed new executive employment agreements around merger with enhanced change-in-control (CIC) severance constructs for executives | |
| CIC severance (executive framework) | Lump sum equal to 12 months base salary + 1.0x target bonus, up to 12 months COBRA, and acceleration of unvested time-based equity; CIC window = 3 months before to 12 months after | |
| Outside CIC termination | Company disclosed typical “cause,” “good reason,” disability provisions; good reason includes material diminution of duties, salary cut (broadly consistent clauses shown in executive agreements) | |
| Clawback | Compensation recovery policy adopted Nov 3, 2023, retroactive to Oct 2, 2023, to recoup incentive pay upon required restatements | |
| Anti-hedging/pledging | Prohibits short sales, derivatives, hedges; prohibits pledging or margin |
Note: While the company disclosed detailed terms for certain executives (e.g., CEO/CFO) and the CIC framework applicable to executive agreements broadly, a standalone Chappell employment agreement was not specifically filed in the reviewed documents; policy-level terms are applied here as company disclosures covering executive officers .
Company Performance During Chappell’s Tenure
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Pay vs Performance – TSR value of initial $100 investment ($) | $25 | $20 |
| Net Income (USD thousands) | $(81,172) | $(83,581) |
| Collaboration Revenue (USD millions) | $0.0 | $2.3 |
| Development stage status | No product sales; early-stage RNA editing platform | Narrative |
Compensation Committee & Governance Context
- Compensation Committee: Nessan Bermingham (Chair), Ali Behbahani, Katharine Knobil, Timothy Pearson; met three times in 2024; external consultant Alpine Rewards engaged, with no conflicts noted .
- Equity grant practices: annual grants effective first trading day in February; new hire/promotion grants effective the first trading day following the first of the month; committee avoids timing grants around MNPI; anti-hedging/pledging embedded in policy .
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Hedging/pledging prohibited (reduces misalignment risk) .
- Strong clawback policy adopted per SEC/Nasdaq rules .
- No Form 144 selling notices for Chappell found in KRRO’s filing index search, limiting evidence of planned insider sales pressure from him; broader company notices exist but not linked to Chappell in results returned [Search attempted; none found].
- Development-stage losses and equity volatility (TSR data) heighten compensation alignment scrutiny and retention risk given long-duration value creation cycles .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Anti-hedging/pledging, clawback policy, and CIC constructs suggest governance frameworks consistent with investor-friendly practices; however, lack of Chappell-specific disclosed pay metrics limits pay-for-performance assessment granularity .
- Retention and selling pressure: Post-merger lock-up included Chappell (180 days), and absence of disclosed Form 144s for him reduces near-term sale signal; option-heavy plan capacity could create future dilution but aligns executives to long-term value realization .
- Execution risk: Corporate TSR declines and sustained losses reflect development-stage profile; Chappell’s operating background across pharma/medtech portfolio execution is a positive for clinical and platform scaling, but value creation will hinge on KRRO-110 clinical data and OPERA platform milestones, not yet tied to disclosed PSU metrics or multi-year performance grids for him .
