# Thomas B. Neff

> Thomas B. Neff founded FibroGen in 1993 and served as chairman and CEO until his death in August 2019. His career connected investment banking at PaineWebber and Lazard, royalty investment partnerships that preceded Royalty Pharma, and company building in San Francisco. A Claremont McKenna College graduate and trustee, he studied molecular biology and government and later pursued economics and finance at the University of Chicago.

- **Role:** Entrepreneur, investment banker, investor and corporate executive
- **Organizations:** FibroGen, Inc., PaineWebber, Lazard Frères & Co., Pharmaceutical Partners I, Pharmaceutical Partners II, Three Arch Bay Health Science Fund, Claremont McKenna College, Thomas J. Watson Foundation, Kolltan Pharmaceuticals
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.A., concentrations in molecular biology and government, Claremont McKenna College, Graduate studies in economics and finance; completed degree not established by primary sources, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, Honorary doctorate (honoris causa), University of Oulu
- **Known for:** Founded and led FibroGen from 1993 to 2019., Founded Pharmaceutical Partners I and II, royalty investment entities identified in FibroGen’s registration statement as predecessors of Royalty Pharma., Led FibroGen during its 2014 public offering: 9,315,000 shares sold at $18 per share.

## Career timeline

- **1976** — Graduated from Claremont McKenna College; subsequently became a Thomas J. Watson Foundation fellow.
- **1983-1988** — Worked as an investment banker at PaineWebber, according to FibroGen’s 2014 registration statement.
- **1988-1992** — Worked at Lazard Frères & Co.; a public biography describes his position as senior vice president.
- **1991** — Selected among 40 future financial industry leaders in an Institutional Investor poll of 600 financial leaders.
- **1993** — Founded FibroGen and became chairman and CEO; also founded Three Arch Bay Health Science Fund.
- **1998** — Left the Pharmaceutical Partners group to concentrate on FibroGen, retaining managing general partner duties until distributions were completed in 2009.
- **2002** — Joined Claremont McKenna College’s Board of Trustees.
- **2006** — FibroGen signed a 15-year lease for a Mission Bay headquarters.
- **2008** — FibroGen completed its move from South San Francisco to Mission Bay.
- **2009** — Received an honorary doctorate from the University of Oulu and became a Kolltan Pharmaceuticals director.
- **2014** — Led FibroGen through its Nasdaq debut on November 14; the IPO closed November 19.
- **2019** — His tenure as chairman and CEO ended with his death on August 25.

## Achievements

- Founded and led FibroGen from 1993 to 2019.
- Founded Pharmaceutical Partners I and II, royalty investment entities identified in FibroGen’s registration statement as predecessors of Royalty Pharma.
- Led FibroGen during its 2014 public offering: 9,315,000 shares sold at $18 per share.
- Named inventor on more than 100 patents and patent applications, according to the 2014 registration statement.
- Served as a Claremont McKenna College trustee from 2002 to 2019.

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — The company Neff founded announced its rebranding to Kyntra Bio on January 7, with the Nasdaq symbol KYNB effective January 8. This is an organizational update after his death.
- **2021-10** — Claremont McKenna elected Donna Wengert Neff to its Board of Trustees; its announcement also remembered her husband’s longtime service.
- **2019-08** — FibroGen announced Neff’s passing and appointed James A. Schoeneck interim CEO.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-neff-b8596949

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/thomas-neff
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-13