According to PharmaDJ data, 16 privately held Chinese drugmakers secured financing in October 2024. Of these, 13 disclosed funding amounts totaling $200 million. Compared to September, the number of deals and total funding raised increased by 60% and 135%, respectively.
TenNor Therapeutics and LaNova Medicines emerged as the top recipients, each securing over $42 million.
Founded in 2013 in Suzhou, TenNor is a clinical-stage biotech focused on developing therapies for bacterial infections and metabolic diseases. The newly raised funds will support the advancement of rifasutenizol, a potential therapy for Helicobacter pylori infections.
Shanghai-based LaNova Medicines specializes in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and immuno-oncology. The company plans to use the funds to advance its clinical pipeline, particularly its lead assets, LM-302 (anti-CLDN 18.2 ADC) and LM-108 (anti-CCR8 mAb), and to expand its innovative discovery platforms.
Beijing Biostar Pharmaceuticals, a developer of bioengineered cancer treatments, made a notable entry onto the Hong Kong stock market. This marks Biostar’s third attempt at an IPO, following a failed bid to list on Shanghai’s STAR Market two years ago and an earlier setback in Hong Kong.
Biostar offered approximately 14.59 million shares at HK$16, raising HK$233 million ($30 million). The stock jumped to HK$25.95 on its trading debut, marking a 62% increase from the IPO price.
Founded in 2002 by Chinese-American couple Tang Li and Qiu Rongguo, Biostar focuses on developing innovative oncology drugs using synthetic biotechnology. The company achieved a breakthrough with its utidelone injection, approved in 2021 for the treatment of recurrent or metastatic breast cancer in combination with other drugs.
Ten licensing deals involving Chinese drugmakers were disclosed, totaling $2.5 billion, including $470 million in upfront payments. These figures represent month-to-month changes of +6% and -55%, respectively.
Only one in-licensing deal with a company outside China was recorded, with no financial terms disclosed, compared to no in-licensing deals in September.
There were five out-licensing deals from Chinese biopharma companies, amounting to $2.5 billion, including $470 million in upfront payments—a month-to-month increase of 44% and a 50% decrease in upfront payments, respectively.
Four additional licensing deals occurred between Chinese drugmakers, with two deals involving upfront payments of at least $100 million.
Notably, Chinese biotech firm Chimagen Biosciences signed a licensing agreement with GSK valued at up to $850 million. GSK will pay $300 million upfront, with potential milestone payments of $550 million to acquire experimental therapy CMG1A46, a dual CD19/CD20-targeted T-cell engager aimed at deep B cell depletion. The antibody drug is in early clinical trials for leukemia and lymphoma, and GSK plans to begin early trials for lupus in 2025.
In another major deal, British pharma company AstraZeneca paid China’s CSPC Pharmaceutical Group $100 million upfront, with up to $1.92 billion in potential milestone payments for the preclinical oral lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)) disruptor YS2302018. AstraZeneca aims to develop the drug candidate, alone or in combination with its own experimental PCSK9 blocker, AZD0780, for a range of cardiovascular diseases.
Below are notable drug approvals in China.
