Global Health Investment Corporation

About GHIC

GHIC is driving innovation through its global network of partners and collaborators.

A lab technician looking through a microscope in a blue PPE suit, and bright orange gloves.

A unique model driven by architects of health innovation

A pioneer of impact investing in global health, GHIC has been financing innovation for nearly a decade. Our inaugural Global Health Investment Fund (GHIF) accelerated the development of new products to combat infectious diseases that disproportionately burden people living in low- and middle-income countries.

Building on the success of GHIF, we have expanded our mission to pursue additional partnerships to develop and commercialize health technologies to strengthen global health security and to address pandemic threats.

Inspired by remarkable vision

In 2012, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation sponsored the creation of the Global Health Investment Corporation and the launch of its initial fund, the Global Health Investment Fund, with the support of JP Morgan Chase. The original vision was to apply well-established venture capital practices using a blend of private, public, and philanthropic assets to accelerate the development of products and technologies that would improve lives globally by addressing high-burden public health challenges. 

"We invest in global health because we know that when health improves, life improves by every measure." – Bill Gates, Co-chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Energized by Collaboration

The Government of Germany, acting through the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the KfW Development Bank, helped capitalize GHIC with an initial grant and remains a key strategic partner and funder of GHIC.

Other GHIF stakeholders and investors include the Government of Canada (through Grand Challenges Canada), the Government of Sweden (through the Swedish International Development Agency), the International Finance Corporation, GSK, Merck, Pfizer, AXA Investment Managers, Storebrand, JP Morgan Social Finance, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, along with other foundations and individual investors.

Since its launch, GHIF's success has inspired the launch of other impact investment funds, with GHIC’s support and collaboration.

Preventing Future Threats

Most recently, the U.S. government, through BARDA, a division within the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Preparedness and Response, entered into a 10-year venture investment partnership with GHIC. BARDA will provide GHIC with funding, as well as scientific and technical input, and GHIC will mobilize additional third-party capital to launch a new global health security investment fund.  The fund will finance the development of technologies to respond to or prevent future pandemics and other health security threats.

Our Team

GHIC’s management team draws upon its board of directors, advisory committees and global health partners and collaborators to identify and evaluate promising investment opportunities. GHIC actively manages its investment portfolio to deliver measurable health impact and meaningful financial results.

Team

Labeeb M. Abboud

Chairman and CEO

Labeeb Abboud has served in various leadership roles in global health product development and innovative financing, including the establishment of GHIC and the launch of its Global Health Investment Fund.  As Chairman since 2014, he has led GHIC’s engagement with government, philanthropic and private sector stakeholders and oversight of the investment management function. In 2021, Labeeb joined GHIC as CEO as the organization expanded its mission to include global health security and launch its BARDA partnership, and leads the GHIC team working to advance the organization's mission through its investment activities, programs and partnerships.  Previously, he spent 17 years in senior leadership roles at IAVI, where he was responsible for structuring a wide range of vaccine and antibody research, development and licensing agreements with industry, academic and public sector partners in the fields of HIV, tuberculosis, COVID-19 and other emerging infectious diseases, with the goal of ensuring that products developed were made accessible and affordable globally.  Prior to IAVI, his work experience spanned almost two decades in international law and global financial services. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Olayinka Fagbayi

Vice President

Olayinka Fagbayi works closely with the CEO and the broader organization to help shape and implement the organizational strategy, and ensure GHIC’s programmatic activities are innovative, mission aligned, and effectively executed and operationalized. Olayinka joins GHIC from IAVI, where she was Senior R&D Program Director, serving as a key partner to senior leadership in the execution of the organization's scientific strategy. Additionally, Olayinka directed and managed global vaccine and antibody research and development programs and consortia, fostering growth, driving change, and developing partnerships with governments, industry, academia, and civil society. Olayinka graduated with a B.S. in Biology and minor in Chemistry from Stanford University.

Charlie Petty

Partner

Charlie Petty helps run the investment team. Previously, he was a co-founder of Adjuvant Capital, a $300m venture capital fund focused on high burden public health challenges, where he remains a venture partner and serves as a board director or observer for Codagenix, VitriVax, Curevo Vaccine, and Minervax.  Previously, Charlie was with the Global Health Investment Fund, where he was involved in the firm’s investments in Eubiologics, IanTech, Alydia Health, and Medicines Development for Global Health. Charlie began his technology investing career at Artemis after spending several years in Port au Prince, Haiti, where he worked with the country’s largest microfinance bank. Charlie serves as an advisor to Effective Giving, a large donor advisor affiliated with the Effective Altruism movement, and to the Innovative Genomics Institute, where he is involved with efforts to increase access to  genomic medicines in the developing world. Charlie is a graduate of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and is a Class 25 Kauffman Fellow. 

Damien Soghoian

Partner

Damien Soghoian, PhD helps run the investment team.  Previously, he was a Director at Foresite Capital Management and Head of Strategy and Operations at Foresite Labs. Damien was an early employee at Verily Life Sciences (formerly Google Life Sciences), where he was technical lead for Verily’s population scale immune observatory platform and Project Baseline, a distributed clinical trial solution. At Foresite, he focused on investing in early stage life science and healthcare companies and helped found and run the firm’s  incubator, Foresite Labs, where he was part of the leadership team and focused on the incubation of new healthcare and biotechnology companies that use the tools of data science to solve unmet medical needs. Damien has a PhD in Virology from Harvard University and is a founding member of the Alliance to End Biological Risks at the Council on Strategic Risks (CSR).

Evelyn Yanatos

Treasurer & Secretary

Evelyn Yanatos serves as the organization’s senior finance professional since 2016, she oversees accounting, manages risk and directs compliance, audits, and financial controls. Evelyn has extensive experience in investment analysis and valuation, fundraising, SEC, tax, and other financial reporting, and has held a variety of senior finance roles in New York-based funds and other companies. Evelyn received an MBA from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business and a BS in Accounting from Binghamton University.  She is a Certified Public Accountant in New York State.

Curt LaBelle

Senior Advisor
Curt LaBelle, MD, MBA serves as a Senior Advisor to GHIC, with a focus on investments. Previously, Curt served as President of GHIC. Curt has served as the Investment Manager for GHIF since 2015, and he has been responsible for sourcing transactions with both impact potential and attractive financial upside, leading the diligence and structuring process, portfolio company management, and reporting to the GHIC Board and the fund’s investors. Curt has 20 years of venture and growth capital experience with healthcare companies, including in guiding companies to successful exits through M&A transactions and public offerings. He currently serves as a Director for several GHIF portfolio companies (Alydia, Atomo, Atticus) and as Chair of steering committees for IanTech and the Serum Institute. Curt holds a M.D. and an MBA from Columbia University and a BA in Economics from Brigham Young University.

Zina Affas Besse

Senior Advisor

Zina Affas Besse, PhD, RPh serves as a Senior Advisor to GHIC, with a focus on new investments. Zina plays a leading role in the evaluation and structuring of investments across a wide range of pipeline opportunities. She has been active in life science investing and company management for over 20 years, including with Atlas Ventures in the US and the UK where she was involved in sourcing, leading and managing investments in Europe, North America and Asia, as well as fund-raising and developing relationships with pharmaceutical companies. She earned her Ph.D. and her BPharm (Hons) degree in Pharmacy and Medicinal Chemistry from the University of Nottingham. She is fluent in both English and Arabic.

Joël Besse

Senior Advisor

Joël Besse serves as Senior Advisor to GHIC, and plays a leading role in the sourcing and evaluation of pipeline opportunities and structuring of investment transactions. Joël brings over 30 years of experience investing in, co-founding, and advising emerging life sciences companies. He has served in leadership roles at SED Ventures (later acquired by Paul Capital), Atlas Ventures, and Momentum Biotech. At Atlas, Joël served as a Managing Partner, leading their European life sciences team, where he sponsored Seed to Series B financings and served as a director for more than 20 companies. Joël is currently the Chairman of NFL Biosciences, sits on the boards or is a shareholder of multiple drug development, medtech, AI startups internationally. He holds an MSc in Aerospace Engineering from ISAE-SUPAERO and an MSc from Toulouse University.

Katharine Rubin

Analyst

Katharine Rubin supports GHIC’s partnership with BARDA, investment management and operational activities. Most recently, Katharine worked for a healthcare technology startup on the business development team. Previously, she worked in academic research for Stanford University supporting US and global public health studies focused on addressing infectious diseases such as COVID-19 and HIV/AIDS and to assess tools to prevent chronic diseases. Katharine graduated with a B.A. in Human Biology and a minor in History from Stanford University.

Cameron Irby

Analyst

Cameron Irby brings his experience in financial modeling, valuation, and transaction advisory services to GHIC. Cameron has consulted companies for purposes related to mergers and acquisitions, deferred compensation, financial reporting, and raising capital. These companies have ranged from pre-revenue startups to publicly traded entities.  He graduated with a B.S. in Finance and in Marketing from Westminster College, and holds a Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) credential from the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.

Board of Directors

Labeeb M. Abboud

Chairman and CEO

Labeeb Abboud has served in various leadership roles in global health product development and innovative financing, including the establishment of GHIC and the launch of its Global Health Investment Fund.  As Chairman, he leads GHIC’s engagement with government, philanthropic and private sector stakeholders and oversight of the investment management function. In July 2021, Labeeb joined GHIC as CEO as the organization expanded its mission to include global health security and launch its BARDA partnership.  Previously, he spent 17 years in senior leadership roles at IAVI, where he was responsible for structuring a wide range of vaccine and antibody research, development and licensing agreements in the fields of HIV, tuberculosis, COVID-19 and other emerging infectious diseases.  Prior to IAVI, his work experience spanned almost two decades in international law and financial services. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Kai Gesing

Director

KfW Development Bank

Mr. Kai Gesing, MD serves as a Senior Health and Population Expert in KfW Entwicklungsbank (KfW development bank). Since 2002, Mr. Gesing has worked for KfW and has overseen German financing for global health programs in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Previously, he worked for three years as a health consultant with EPOS Health Management Consultants. He has also lived and worked on health in both East Africa and West Africa. From 1996 to 1998, he served as a technical leader as the Regional Health Management Advisor in Mtwara, Tanzania. He also worked as a district medical officer and hospital director in Burkina Faso from 1989 to 1994. Earlier in his career, he worked in general medicine and in surgery at St. Joseph Hospital in the Netherlands. Mr. Gesing completed a M.D. from the University of Antwerp and a Diploma in Tropical Medicine from Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium. He graduated with a Master’s in Community Health and Health Management from Heidelberg University.

William Greene

Director

Fountain Therapeutics 

William Greene, MD has more than 20 years of experience as a senior biotechnology executive and venture capital investor. Dr. Greene is the CEO of Fountain Therapeutics, a company focused using advanced AI/Machine Learning to target cellular age to discover and develop novel therapies for chronic degenerative diseases.  Prior to Fountain, Dr. Greene was CEO of Iconic Therapeutics, and co-founder of Pear Therapeutics.  Previously, Bill was a Managing Director at MPM Capital for over 12 years, leading investments andserving on Boards of emerging biopharmaceutical and medical device companies worldwide. Earlier in his career, he was at Genentech where he led clinical development programs in several therapeutic areas, leading to two approved products. Dr. Greene completed a M.D. at the University of California, San Francisco and has BA in Biology from Wesleyan University. 

George W. Wellde, Jr.

Director

Goldman Sachs and Co.

Mr. George Wellde served in various leadership roles at Goldman, Sachs & Co. during his 30 year tenure, including as Vice Chairman of the Securities Division until his retirement in 2008. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Mr. Wellde worked for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in Washington D.C. Mr. Wellde was one of the founding board members of Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, where he served as a director for 15 years, and helped structure the International Financing Facility for Immunization, which has mobilized over $6 billion to accelerate funding for vaccines and helped GAVI immunize more than 700 million children in poor countries. He serves as a director of Fortress Investment Group, Revolution Global, and the Partnership for Public Service in Washington, D.C., and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Mr. Wellde holds an M.B.A. from George Washington University and a B.S. from the University of Richmond.