Derek Rapp

Derek Rapp is a Managing Director at RiverVest Venture Partners, where he invests in life sciences, including medical devices and biopharmaceuticals, with a focus on building companies addressing significant unmet medical needs. He invests across early through later stages, including Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Venture Round, and Post‑IPO Equity, primarily in the United States with activity in the Midwestern US, Northeastern US, Washington DC Metro Area, San Diego, and the Greater Houston Area. He serves on the board of WeedOUT and has invested in companies such as Biolinq, Sparrow Pharmaceuticals, Glycomine, Alleviant Medical, and Arch Oncology. Before RiverVest, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of JDRF International; Chief Executive Officer of Divergence, Inc.; and held multiple leadership roles at Monsanto Company, including Mergers & Acquisitions and New Growth Platforms Lead, Chemistry Development Strategy Lead, Director of Mergers & Acquisitions, Director of M&A and Licensing (The Ceregen Group), Director of Strategic Planning (Agricultural Group), Director of Investor Relations, and Strategic Planning Analyst. Earlier in his career, he was an Analyst at Lazard Freres & Co. and a Finance Intern at American Airlines. Derek holds an MBA from The Wharton School and a BA from Brown University, and resides in St. Louis, Missouri.