Srinivas Akkaraju
About Srinivas Akkaraju
Srinivas Akkaraju, M.D., Ph.D. (age 57) is an independent director of Mineralys Therapeutics, serving on the board since February 2021. He is Managing General Partner and founder of Samsara BioCapital (2017–present), with prior investing roles at Sofinnova Ventures, New Leaf Venture Partners, Panorama Capital and J.P. Morgan Partners, and earlier corporate development experience at Genentech. He holds an M.D. and Ph.D. in Immunology from Stanford University and undergraduate degrees in Biochemistry and Computer Science from Rice University .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Genentech (Roche) | Business/Corporate Development | 1998–2001 | Biopharma operating/BD grounding |
| J.P. Morgan Partners | Investing team member; became Partner | 2001–2005 (Partner in 2005) | Foundation for later VC leadership |
| Panorama Capital (co-founded) | Managing Director | 2006–2008 | Built early-stage/venture platform |
| New Leaf Venture Partners | Managing Director | 2009–2013 | Healthcare growth/venture investing |
| Sofinnova Ventures | General Partner; Senior Advisor | 2013–2017 | Late/venture investing leadership |
| Samsara BioCapital (founder) | Managing General Partner | 2017–present | Leads strategy; large MLYS holder |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scholar Rock (public) | Director | Since July 2022 | Ongoing public board seat |
| Syros Pharmaceuticals (public) | Director | Since June 2017 | Ongoing public board seat |
| Various private companies | Director | Not specified | Multiple private boards |
| Prior public boards (past 5 yrs) | Director | Various | Chinook, Intercept, Aravive, aTyr, Jiya Acquisition, Principia, Seattle Genetics (now Seagen) |
Board Governance
- Independence: The board determined all directors other than CEO Jon Congleton are independent under Nasdaq rules; this includes Dr. Akkaraju. The board also made a subjective determination that no relationships impair independent judgment; no family relationships among directors/executives .
- Board & committee attendance: Board met six times in 2024; each director attended at least 75% of board and applicable committee meetings during their service periods .
- Annual meeting attendance: No director attended the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders (company encourages but does not require attendance) .
- Committee assignments (most recent year):
- Compensation Committee: Member from Jan 1, 2024 through Feb 13, 2025; after Feb 13, 2025, committee reconstituted without him .
- Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee: Member throughout 2024 and through April 9, 2025 .
- Audit Committee: Not a member (current members: Karydas (Chair), DiRocco, Sblendorio) .
| Committee | Role | Window | Meeting Count (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation | Member | Jan 1, 2024 – Feb 13, 2025 | 5 meetings |
| Nominating & Corporate Governance | Member | Jan 1, 2024 – Apr 9, 2025 | 3 meetings |
| Audit | — | Not applicable | 5 meetings (committee context) |
Fixed Compensation (Non-Employee Director)
| Year | Cash Retainer and Fees ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 49,000 | Consistent with 2024 program: $40,000 base + committee member fees (Comp $5,000; NCG $4,000) |
- Program changes effective Jan 1, 2025: chair/member retainers increased (e.g., Comp Chair $15,000; member $7,500; NCG Chair $10,000; member $5,000; Lead/Chair of Board retainer $32,500; base retainer remains $40,000) .
Performance Compensation (Equity – Non-Employee Director)
| Year | Option Awards ($, grant-date fair value) | Outstanding Director Options as of 12/31/2024 | Equity Award Mechanics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 197,314 | 66,000 options | 2024 Annual Grant: 22,000 options; initial grant for new directors: 44,000 options. 2025 program increases to 32,900 annual and 65,800 initial. Options vest monthly (annual over 12 months; initial over 36 months); strike = FMV on grant date; certain vesting acceleration on change in control or upon not being re-nominated/death/disability . |
Clawback: Company adopted an incentive-compensation clawback policy in Oct 2023 applicable to current/former executive officers for accounting restatements; this does not apply to non-employee directors’ standard option grants .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Area | Detail |
|---|---|
| Current public boards | Scholar Rock (since Jul 2022); Syros Pharmaceuticals (since Jun 2017) |
| Investor affiliations on MLYS board | Significant holders with affiliated directors include Samsara BioCapital (Akkaraju), RA Capital (DiRocco), and Catalys Pacific (Slingsby) . |
| Financing participation | Samsara BioCapital purchased 600,000 shares in Mar 2025 follow-on; 555,555 shares in Feb 2024 private placement . |
| Legacy agreements | Voting Agreement (pre-IPO) named Akkaraju among directors elected; terminated at IPO. Investors’ Rights Agreement registration rights continue for 5 years post-IPO . |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Scientific and medical credentials: M.D. and Ph.D. in Immunology (Stanford) .
- Investing/board expertise: Extensive biopharma venture leadership and multiple public/private directorships; the board cites this experience as rationale for his service .
- Technology/analytics: Undergraduate degrees in Biochemistry and Computer Science (Rice) .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Form of Ownership | Shares | % Outstanding | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsara BioCapital, L.P. (affiliated) | Common stock | 5,674,916 | 8.75% | Reported 5%+ holder; Dr. Akkaraju has voting/investment power; disclaims beneficial ownership except for pecuniary interest . |
| Srinivas Akkaraju (director) | Stock options (exercisable within 60 days) | 63,225 | — | Included in his total beneficial ownership line . |
| Srinivas Akkaraju (aggregate beneficial) | Common + options (as above) | 5,738,141 | 8.84% | Based on 64,876,228 shares outstanding as of Mar 25, 2025 . |
- Pledging/hedging: Company policy prohibits pledging company stock as collateral and prohibits hedging transactions by directors/officers/employees (reduces alignment risk) .
- Section 16(a) compliance: No delinquencies reported for Dr. Akkaraju in 2024; the proxy lists exceptions for other insiders only .
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent director with deep biopharma investing and scientific acumen; active service on Nominating & Corporate Governance (governance oversight) and prior service on Compensation (pay oversight) .
- Strong ownership alignment via significant affiliated stake (Samsara) and standard director option program; no pledging permitted under company policy .
- Board determined independence despite affiliations; compensation committee interlocks disclosed as “none” .
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Potential Risks/Red Flags
- Interlocking influence risk: Multiple large investors have board representation (Samsara, RA Capital, Catalys), and these funds participated in recent financings; while covered by related-person review policies, this concentration can raise perceived conflict risks around capital allocation and strategic decisions .
- Annual meeting attendance: No directors attended the 2024 annual meeting, which can be viewed as a modest engagement negative for some investors .
-
Compensation Structure Signals
- Director pay is equity-heavy (2024 mix: ~$49k cash vs ~$197k options), emphasizing long-term alignment; 2025 program increases committee/leadership retainers and grant sizes, modestly raising guaranteed cash and equity exposure .
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Other Notes
- Related-party framework: Company adopted a written policy for related-person transactions; Audit Committee reviews such items. Legacy pre-IPO voting agreement has terminated; registration rights persist five years post-IPO .
- Board activity: Board met six times; all directors met 75%+ attendance thresholds; committees met regularly (Comp 5; NCG 3; Audit 5) .
Overall: Akkaraju brings relevant dealmaking and scientific expertise with meaningful ownership alignment. Investors should monitor transactions involving significant holders and board reconstitutions (e.g., his rotation off the Compensation Committee in Feb 2025) to assess ongoing independence optics and pay oversight balance .