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Part 1 of 2: Our guest today is Parag Shah, CEO and Founding Managing Director of K2 HealthVentures. K2 HealthVentures is an alternative investment firm that provides flexible, long-term financing solutions to innovative private and public companies in the life sciences and healthcare industries. Committed to making a broader impact, K2 also donates a percentage of its profits to support underserved areas in healthcare.

Before founding K2, Parag was Senior Managing Director & Group Head of the Life Sciences practice at Hercules Capital, where he led the fund’s public offering and managed over $2 billion in investments. His deep expertise in life science and healthcare financing was further shaped through key leadership roles at Comerica, Imperial Bank, and BankBoston.Parag’s academic background includes a Masters in Environmental Policy & Planning and a Bachelors in Molecular Biology from MIT, where he conducted research at the Whitehead Institute. 

With 25+ years of experience at the intersection of science and finance, Parag brings invaluable insights for first-time founders, investors, scientists, and industry leaders navigating the complexities of biotech funding.

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Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/ 

K2 HealthVentures: https://www.k2healthventures.com/

Hercules Capital: https://www.htgc.com/

BankBoston (now part of Bank of America): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BankBoston

Imperial Bank (acquired by Comerica):  https://www.comerica.com/

Venture Debt in Biotech: https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/rise-venture-debt-and-when-biotechs-should-and-shouldnt-use-it

Equity vs. Debt Financing: https://www.excedr.com/resources/debt-equity-options-funding-startup

Biotech Startup Fundraising: https://www.excedr.com/resources/biotech-startup-funding-options

Risk-Taking & Leadership in Startups:

Biotech Startup Support: https://www.excedr.com/resources-category/biotech-startup-support

Scaling Biotech Companies: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/scaling-up-overcoming-multifaceted-challenges-growing-rami-levin-njoqe/

Larry Suskind: https://dusp.mit.edu/people/lawrence-susskind

John Ehrenfeld: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnehrenfeld/

00:00 Intro

02:59 Parag’s background and early career in finance

06:24 Growing up in NYC and how his parents influenced his mindset

09:42 The impact of education and key mentors in shaping his path

15:11 Transitioning from science to finance, why he left the lab

19:56 Lessons from Bank Boston and entering the world of credit investing

24:32 Moving to Argentina and unexpected entry into banking

29:56 Joining Imperial Bank and the challenges of building biotech venture credit

36:37 Understanding risk-taking and decision-making in biotech financing

42:52 When startups should use debt vs. equity and how venture debt fits into biotech funding

46:02 Outro

The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.