MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Alex Barkas, a venture capitalist with Prosper Venture Partners, died unexpectedly Nov. 21. He was 64.
Barkas had been a managing director at Prospect since 1997. He served on the boards of many biotech companies during his career, including Complete Genomics (NSDQ:GNOM), Geron (NSDQ:GERN), Tercica, Amicus and Novacept.
Prospect posted a brief memorial to Barkas, whose cause of death was undetermined as of Nov. 23, according to Xconomy:
"Alex was an extraordinary father, and husband, friend and colleague, deeply admired and respected by all who had the special privilege to know and work with him. Alex brought passion, wisdom, sincerity and an unrivaled love of life. Alex leaves behind for us a legacy of hope and commitment to achieve greatness with kindness, care and perseverance. He will be very deeply missed.”
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"Its a tragic loss for his family, friends and for the industry. Alex was one of the great early-stage biotech investors. He was not afraid to create companies that were against the conventional wisdom, and he was more often right," Bob Nelsen, a managing director with Arch Venture Partners, told Xconomy.
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