VHS Team

Kevin J. Esval
Founder, Executive Managing Director, and CCO
esval@velocityhealth.com

Kevin J. Esval has served as Executive Managing Director and CCO of VelocityHealth Securities since founding the company in 2000. Mr. Esval has significant industry and investment banking experienced in most sectors of health care including specialty pharmaceuticals & generics, health care services, health care IT, diagnostics, biotechnology, and other sectors. With his extensive transactional and financing experience serving as a valuable resource, Mr. Esval takes an active role with all clients. Additionally, through his prior operating experience as an executive in growth oriented health care companies and active roles on boards of directors, Mr. Esval has developed a keen understanding of the challenges faced by middle market and growth companies. Mr. Esval has negotiated, structured, and executed various types of transactions including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and licensings; corporate and transactional financings, including equity, mezzanine and debt financings.

Previously, Mr. Esval served as a divisional SVP and COO for UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), one of the largest health care services companies in the world with annual revenues exceeding $80 billion. As one of the original startup executives of his division, Mr. Esval was instrumental in taking it from $0 to $400 million as of his departure. His career in health care began with a venture-backed startup Complete Health Services, Inc. This firm was one of Inc. Magazine’s “Fastest Growing Private Companies” in 1994. During this period, Mr. Esval was this company’s top sales executive, and managed the startup of two new divisions.

Additionally, Mr. Esval spent 5 years in sales, financial analysis, and trading roles at several financial derivatives companies, including Chicago based Rosenthal-Collins Group and R. J. O’Brien. During this period, his roles included working on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).

Mr. Esval has served on the Board of Directors of multiple health care companies, and currently serves on the Board of Directors on several specialty pharmaceutical companies.

Mr. Esval received his BA degree from Furman University while on a football scholarship. Additionally, he studied internationally in Lausanne, Switzerland. Mr. Esval is a dual citizen of the USA and the Republic of Ireland.

Mr. Esval holds the Series 24, 7 & 63 Licenses.

Kenneth R. George, CPA
Chief Financial Officer and FINOP

Kenneth R. George serves as the CFO and FINOP of VelocityHealth Securities, and is founder and CEO of FINOP Services, LLC. Formerly, he worked as a Compliance Examiner in NASD (now FINRA) Regulation, Inc.'s Boston District office. While with NASD, he conducted routine examinations of NASD member firms, assisted in bringing new members into the Association.  He was also a Senior Assistant Examiner for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Mr. George is a Licensed CPA in the state of New Hampshire, and obtained his Bachelors of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of New Hampshire.

Mr. George holds the Series 27, 24, 7 & 63 Licenses.

Christian Eidnes
Senior Advisor
eidnes@velocityhealth.com

Mr. Eidnes is a Senior Advisor for VelocityHealth Securities, and he is focused on the life sciences sectors, including pharmaceuticals where he is very experienced in the generic sector.  Mr. Eidnes was the Director of Business Development for Orbus Pharmacuticals, which was a generic pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Toronto, Canada.  Mr. Eidnes has significant experience within various sectors in the pharmaceutical industry including the in-licensing and out-licensing of products in Canada, the EU and the USA.  He previously worked for international pharmaceutical companies such as Pharmascience Inc., Lab Pharmacological Research Intl., and Alternova A/S
.
He earned a BA degree from the Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.  Mr. Eidnes is a dual citizen of the Canada and Norway.

Eugene Lavrov
Analyst
lavrov@velocityhealth.com

Mr. Lavrov is an Analyst for VelocityHealth Securities, and he is focused financial analysis, due diligence, business development and industry research. Prior to VHS, Mr. Lavrov worked for Merrill Lynch’s private banking and investment group as a financial analyst, and GKM Capital as an investment analyst. 

He earned a BS degree from the UCLA in Economics and is currently a MBA candidate focused on Finance at Vanderbilt University.  Mr. Lavrov is a citizen of the USA and Russia.

Mr. Lavrov holds the Series 7 & 66 Licenses.