Martin Rogers
Australian bioentrepreneur (born 1981)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Martin Rogers (born 1981) is an Australian bioentrepreneur who has been associated since 2007 with a number of ASX-listed biotechnology companies, including Prima BioMed, which he led from 2007 to 2012.
Background
Rogers attended the University of New South Wales between 1999 and 2004 where he gained a double degree in chemical engineering and computer science. Between 2004 and 2007 he engaged in a number of entrepreneurial pursuits as well as worked at Macquarie Bank.[1]
Prima BioMed
Rogers was part of an investor group that effectively took control of Prima BioMed in late 2007, when he was appointed a director. At that time Prima had Phase IIa data for its CVac cancer vaccine product, but did not have the funds to progress further. Under Rogers' leadership Prima achievements included:
- Raised approx. A$82m in new capital: Rogers started with a 1-for-2 rights issue in October 2007 (A$2.0m)[2] and followed with Share Purchase Plans in December 2008[3] and June 2009[4] (each approx A$0.2m) and a share placement in June 2009 (A$1.5m)[5] before securing an equity funding line which allowed A$14.7m to be raised between July 2011 and March 2011. From late 2009 capital raising became easier. A third Share Purchase Plan in December 2009 raised A$13.7m[6] while a placement and associated Share Purchase Plan in June 2011 raised A$41.4m.[7] Between 2009 and 2012 the exercise of options brought in another A$8.4m (A$1.3m in 2009/10,[8] A$5.1m in 2010/11[9] and A$2.0m in 2011/12[10]).
- Experienced an increase in its share price: Prima stock re-rated 19-fold between December 2007 and April 2011, creating a company with a market value of ~A$300m.[11]
Prima announced in May 2012 that Rogers would be stepping down as CEO.[12] He left Prima at the end of August 2012. By the end of tenure Prima had made it into the S&P/ASX 300.[13]
Since Prima Biomed
Since 2012 Rogers has been involved at board level in a number of ASX-listed biotech companies, including Cellmid (ASX: CDY) between September 2012[14] and June 2015;[15] Rhinomed (ASX: RNO), since September 2012;[16] OncoSil Medical (ASX: OSL) since April 2013;[17] and Actinogen (ASX: ACW), since September 2014.[18]
In 2018, Martin Rogers, of KTM Ventures, co-invested with Mike Tilley to purchase a 30% stake in cryptocurrency exchange Independent Reserve.[19][20]