Dr. Koh Boon Tong

Executive Director & Chief Industry Officer at Bioprocessing Technology Institute, BioMedical Research Council, A*STAR

Speaker

Prof Koh Boon Tong joined A*STAR as Executive Director of BTI on 3 May 2021. With over 30 years of experience in the private sector, he had managed specialty chemicals, API operations and businesses in China and India. He comes onboard with deep expertise in managing translational research teams, pharmaceutical operations, and businesses across Asia. He further possesses extensive knowledge in GMP operations encompassing research, pilot, and manufacturing, through prominent roles at GSK and Lonza. Boon Tong graduated with a PhD from the National University of Singapore and is Adjunct Professor at Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT).

Boon Tong has also led the conceptualisation and implementation of numerous manufacturing plant start-ups in various parts of China. He has sat on 7 company board directors across Asia including chairman and vice-chairman positions of joint venture companies.

Boon Tong has served concurrently as the Executive Director of the Nucleic Acid Therapeutics Initiative (NATi), a national platform, from October 2023 to 9 May 2025. In this role, he has been instrumental in shaping and executing Singapore's research and development strategies and roadmap for nucleic acid therapeutics and manufacturing. His efforts have been key to building differentiated and globally competitive capabilities to address critical challenges within the industry.