Global Corporate Venturing Rising Stars Awards 2017: Hamzeh Abdul-Hadi

Sandwiched between Israel and Syria makes Jordan from the outside feel an ambitious place to conduct corporate venturing but having set up Hikma Ventures in 2015, the eponymous pharmaceutical company struck its first deals at the end of last year.

Lana Ghanem, managing director at Hikma Ventures, nominated her associate, Hamzeh Abdul-Hadi, for the GCV Rising Stars 2017 award and said: “Hamzeh joined Hikma Pharmaceuticals in October 2015 as a member of the treasury team and in August 2016 he joined Hikma Ventures.

“He is one of the most proactive individuals I have ever worked with. He is attentive to detail, diligent and has been as invaluable member of the team.”

Abdul-Hadi added: “So far, we have made two investments since September 2016 [Chrono Therapeutics’s $47.6m series B round and Propeller Health’s $21.5m C round] and are on track to closing the third one before the end of the year. I consider that an accomplishment in terms of timing and execution.

“Collaboration between different CVCs is essential and will make the industry much stronger because the digital health space is growing exponentially and people need to work together to come up with the best solutions in a timely manner.”

Ghanem said of its Chrono deal that it was a “pioneer in digital drug therapy for the treatment of smoking addiction.

“Targeting opportunities that enhance value creation for the business is key to Hikma Ventures’ approach. We believe that this investment has significant potential and is aligned with our strategy of investing in the exciting consumer and digital health segments.”

But while Hikma’s position in the Middle East is attractive for entrepreneurs looking to expand there, Abdul-Hadi said “some of the challenges I face is keeping up to date with the latest news/technologies in healthcare as this is crucial in our business.

“But with a finance background [a bachelor of business administration from George Washington University, I believe I can bring a lot to the table from the finance angle as well as strategically and analysis of opportunities.”

His prior experience as the entrepreneur behind the Spain-based social media startup Whosbuzzin, analyst at Capital Investments and in budgeting and planning for tobacco maker Phillip Morris International helped shape his insights at Hikma.

And, in the longer term, he said he wanted to use the experience to “run a VC myself one day”.