About us

JIXING is a leading biotechnology company headquartered in Shanghai committed to bringing innovative science and medicines to underserved Chinese patients with serious and life-threatening diseases.

Backed by RTW Investments, JIXING was founded in 2019 and partners with global biotechnology companies to develop and commercialize novel, innovative therapeutics to treat unmet medical needs in cardiovascular and ophthalmic diseases. With a strong and further developing asset pipeline, industry leading talent, and patient-centric focus, JIXING is dedicated to deliver a meaningful and lasting impact on patients in Greater China.

Roderick Wong, MD

Chairman & Board Executive Director

Roderick Wong, MD

Chairman & Board Executive Director

Roderick Wong, MD, is Chairman and Board Executive Director of JIXING. He also serves as Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of RTW Investments, LP (“RTW”). Rod is responsible for managing the firm’s investments focused on innovative drug development. Prior to forming RTW, he was a Managing Director and sole Portfolio Manager for the Davidson Kempner Healthcare Funds.

Before joining Davidson Kempner, Rod held various healthcare investment and research roles at Sigma Capital Partners and Cowen & Company.

Rod simultaneously received an MD from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School and an MBA from Harvard Business School, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BS in Economics from Duke University.

Rod has a keen interest in educating the next generation of life science entrepreneurs. He regularly sits on a variety of corporate boards. In addition, he serves on the board of Penn Medicine, as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance at NYU Stern, and as Chairman of the RTW Charitable Foundation.

Peter Fong, PhD

Board Executive Director

Peter Fong, PhD

Board Executive Director

Peter Fong, PhD, serves on JIXING’s board of directors. He previously served as the founding Chief Executive Officer of JIXING during the company’s formation in 2019/2020. He is also a Senior Managing Director, Head of Company Creation at RTW Investments, LP (“RTW”).

Prior to joining RTW, Peter worked at Flagship Pioneering as a member of the innovation team. In this role, he oversaw the creation and financing of four Flagship companies.  Peter also worked at Genentech in Business Development, where he led multiple transactions, including the company’s partnership with BioNTech on their mRNA personalized cancer vaccine. Before Genentech, Peter led the company creation efforts at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and co-founded Carigent Therapeutics.

Peter received a PhD degree in bioengineering from Yale University, where he subsequently was a Brown-Coxe Postdoctoral Fellow, and his BS in biochemistry from Indiana University.

Sandy Mou

Board Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer

Sandy Mou

Board Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer

Sandy Mou serves as Board Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer at JIXING. She is responsible for leading the full scope of business operations of the company.

Sandy Mou has nearly 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and medical device industry in China and has held management positions at several multinational pharmaceutical companies including GSK, AstraZeneca, Xi’an Janssen, Johnson & Johnson Medical and MSD. She has led teams to successfully launch several leading brands covering a wide range of therapeutic areas including cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, orthopedics, immunology and oncology. In May 2017, Sandy joined MSD China to establish the oncology business unit and oversaw several product launches including Keytruda. Under her leadership, the MSD China’s oncology business was ranked among the top three oncology businesses of multinational pharmaceutical companies in China after just three years. In March 2020, Sandy joined Shanghai Allist Pharmaceutical Technology Co. (Allist) as the Chief Executive Officer. During her tenure, Allist was successfully listed on the Science and Technology Board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, achieved the first new drug approval, commercial launch and listing in the National Reimbursement Drug List. Under Sandy’s leadership, Allist has completed the transformation from a biotech company to an innovative biopharmaceutical company with integrated R&D, manufacturing and commercialization capabilities and has achieved profitability.

Sandy graduated from Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University with a bachelor's degree in Medicine and worked as a clinician for 7 years after graduation. Sandy also holds an EMBA degree from China Europe International Business School.

Joseph Romanelli

Board Director

Joseph Romanelli

Board Director

Joseph Romanelli previously served as Board Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, having led JIXING from July 2021 to June 2022. Joseph will continue to serve as a member of JIXING’s Board of Directors after June 2022.

Joseph has more than 25 years of biopharmaceutical and biotechnology experience, nearly all with Merck & Co., Inc. (“Merck” or “MSD”). He will lead Human Health International and join Merck’s Executive Team, effective August 1, 2022. Most recently, he served as the President of MSD China for more than four years, where he oversaw over 20 product launches, including Keytruda and Gardasil, the latter becoming the largest multinational company (MNC) product in China by revenue. Due to the outstanding product launches and industry leading growth, MSD grew from the 7th in 2017 to the 2nd largest MNC in 2020 in China by revenue under his leadership. From an industry and organizational perspective, he was named a “Top Ten Pharma Leader of the Year” in 2019 by the National Healthy China Forum and managed the company’s more than 5,000 employees in the market. He also briefly served as President of U.S. Human Health at Merck overseeing the company’s largest market by revenue. Previously, Joseph held senior roles, including Vice President of Investor Relations.

Joseph earned a BA in Biological Sciences from the University of Delaware and an MBA from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business.

Gotham Makker, MD

Board Director

Gotham Makker, MD

Board Director

Gotham Makker is the Head of Strategic Investments at RTW. Gotham has more than 17 years of healthcare industry experience. Prior to joining RTW, Gotham served as CEO of Simran Investment Group, LLC, a privately held equity investment fund.

Before Simran, Gotham was a healthcare portfolio manager and principal at Citadel Investment Group LLC and before that served in various analyst roles at Oracle Partners LP, covering biotechnology and medical device sectors. He began his career on the life sciences investment banking team at Hambrecht & Quist. 

Gotham serves on the board of directors of Rocket Pharmaceuticals. He received his MD from the University of Nebraska Medical School and completed the Sarnoff cardiovascular research fellowship at Columbia University, College of Physicians & Surgeons and at Harvard Medical School, Brigham & Women’s Hospital.