Oricell Therapeutics Co. Ltd. has raised $120 million in a series B financing to support development of its cell therapy pipeline and technology platform, as well as the construction of a manufacturing plant. The round was jointly led by Qiming Venture Partners and Quan Capital Management LLC.
Sironax Ltd. has raised $200 million in a series B financing round to support the development of its receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 1 (RIPK1) inhibitors. The latest financing has brought the capital raised by the Beijing and Shanghai-based company to more than $300 million to date.
It’s an august August for Hutchmed Ltd. as it reported positive business results and a number of trial developments, including results from its pivotal global phase III FRESCO-2 trial evaluating the investigational use of fruquintinib in patients with advanced, refractory metastatic colorectal cancer, which met its primary endpoint of overall survival.
Innovent Biologics Inc. has formed a partnership with Sanofi SA to jointly develop and commercialize two of Sanofi’s oncology candidates in combination with sintilimab in China, namely SAR-408701 (tusamitamab ravtansine) and SAR-444245.
Lepu Biopharma Co. Ltd. has been given conditional approval by China’s NMPA for its anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody, Puyouheng (pucotenlimab injection), based on data from a phase II study. The drug was conditionally greenlighted for patients with unresectable or metastatic microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) advanced solid tumors.
Elevation Oncology Inc. has picked up the global rights to SYSA-1801, an anti-Claudin 18.2 antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) candidate, from CSPC Megalith Biopharmaceutical Co. Ltd. in a deal worth up to $1.195 billion. Under the terms, Elevation gets rights to develop and commercialize SYSA-1801 outside of mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
Genuine Biotech Co. Ltd.’s azvudine has been granted conditional approval by China’s NMPA for the treatment of COVID-19. The drug, first granted conditional approval from the NMPA to treat HIV-1-infected adults with high viral loads in July 2021, is the first domestically developed oral medicine approved to treat COVID-19 in China and was approved just 10 days after its application was submitted on July 15.
Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. out-licensed an investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) for the treatment of solid tumors to Merck & Co. Inc. in a deal worth up to $936 million. Sichuan, China-based Kelun-Biotech will receive $35 million up front in the deal and is eligible to receive up to $901 million in future development, approval and commercial milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on net sales.
Inventisbio Co. Ltd. has raised ¥2.084 billion (US$296 million) in an IPO on Shanghai’s STAR Market priced at ¥18.12 per share, though its stock saw a disappointing debut, opening at ¥14 per share on the first trading day July 25 and closing at $15.29, for a drop of 15.6%. The stock closed Aug. 1 at ¥14.42.
Neurofront Therapeutics Ltd. has picked up an option to acquire exclusive Asia rights to a phase II non-opioid drug from Novaremed AG. Under terms of the deal, Novaremed is eligible to receive more than $130 million in option and exercise fees as well as development, regulatory and sales milestone payments plus royalties on net sales.