Hans-Beat Gürtler was born in 1946 and is a Swiss citizen. He holds a Commercial Diploma. He currently serves as management partner for entrepreneurial investments of Varuma AG, a privately held Swiss investment company. He is Member and President of the Boards of Directors of several Swiss-based companies, most of them start-ups and SMEs, primarily in the pharma and biotech sector. He is Vice-Chairman of SIX Swiss Exchange listed Implenia. Prior to joining Varuma, he held the position of Global Chief Executive Officer at Novartis Animal Health in Basel where he was responsible for the worldwide business, including research, development, manufacturing and marketing of animal pharmaceuticals for pets and farm animals. Previously, Gürtler held various management positions at Ciba-Geigy Ltd., including business responsibilities in Eastern Europe, the Northern Hemisphere and the global pest-control business. As CEO of Mahissa, Ciba-Geigy's Seeds business in Spain, he lived in Barcelona for several years.