Jay Shepard

Jay Shepard has been a member of Esperion’s Board of Directors since 2018. Jay has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aravive (formerly Versartis) since 2015, as well as Executive Chairman of the Board since early 2014.

Jay has more than 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and drug delivery arenas and has participated in or led over 16 product launches by preparing markets and establishing sales and marketing operations. He previously served as Executive Partner at Sofinnova Ventures, President and CEO of NextWave Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Pfizer), President and CEO of Ilypsa (acquired by Amgen), interim President and CEO of Relypsa (Ilypsa’s spin-out company, which was acquired by Galencia), and Vice President of Commercial Operations at Telik and Alza Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Johnson & Johnson). He is a board member of Versartis, Inc., the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, and the Santa Clara University Entrepreneurial School.

Jay holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of Arizona.