HONG KONG – Venture capital investment into most sectors in China has generally plunged throughout the COVID-19 pandemic but biotechnology has been a noticeable exception.
The biopharmaceutical sector welcomed a further 11 new IPO graduates in July, bringing the number to 39 that have started to trade on the U.S. markets this year. The companies going public last month collectively raised more than $2.5 billion and most of them made a favorable impression following their first day of trading, with the group increasing their share values by an average of 16%.
Four IPOs from biopharmas chasing an aggregate $781.8 million launched on Friday with mixed results. Two of the companies, Inozyme Pharma Inc. and Annexon Inc., finished the day in positive territory while the other two, Iteos Therapeutics Inc. and Nurix Therapeutics Inc., saw their shares close flat.
HONG KONG – Looking to boost its R&D capacity, China’s Sunshine Guojian Pharmaceutical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. launched an IPO on July 22 that raised ¥1.7 billion (US$240 million) on Shanghai’s STAR market. Shares (SSE:688336) almost doubled in value on the first day of trading, closing at ¥54.10, for a gain of 92%.
IPOs from Alx Oncology Holdings Inc. and Pandion Therapeutics Inc. launched July 17 as investors continued to pour money into biopharma’s public sector. Through June, $8.53 billion in biopharma IPOs had been filed so far this year by 35 companies.
Robust financial markets continue to fuel the industry despite gloom over the COVID-19 pandemic, with Relay Therapeutics Inc. pricing its upsized, 20 million-share IPO at $20 per unit to reap $400 million.
BEIJING – Beijing-based Immunotech Biopharm Ltd. made a strong debut as the first pre-revenue cellular immunotherapy firm to trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), raising $142 million via its IPO. Trading under the ticker 6978, the company’s share price closed at HK$15.48 (US$2) on July 10, up 40.7% from its offer price at HK$11.
Two California companies – Nkarta Inc. and Poseida Therapeutics Inc. – scored impressive IPOs but with decidedly different post-pricing performance, as Wall Street showed its enthusiasm for the former’s natural killer (NK) cell research by pushing shares (NASDAQ:NKTX) up 166%, to close July 10 at $47.90, an increase of $29.90.
HONG KONG – SK Biopharmaceuticals Co Ltd.’s shares are still basking in the afterglow of a successful entrance on the Korea Exchange, which raised ?959.30 billion (US$799 million).
HONG KONG - Ocumension Therapeutics Ltd., a China-based ophthalmic pharmaceutical company, launched its IPO on the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX) this week. The company seeks to raise more than HK$1.5 billion (US$190 million).
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