Deals and Financings

Consun Pharmaceutical Group, a Guangzhou TCM and drug maker, will stage an IPO on the Hong Kong Exchange, raising up to $141 million (see story). The deal will be priced on December 13 and begin trading on December 19. The company will offer 250 million shares. During the first half of 2013, Consun generated $37.2 million in revenues and net income of $9.7 million.

Senhwa Biosciences Inc., a one-year old oncology company based in Taiwan and San Diego, raised $17 million in a Series B financing round (see story). The company will use the proceeds to advance two cancer drugs that are already in development through proof-of-concept. Senhwa raised the new capital from new and existing investors, including H&Q Asia Pacific, Morningside and China Investment & Development Co.

Sihuan Pharma (HK: 00460) signed a cooperation agreement with Dutch pharmaceutical company to-BBB to develop innovative CNS drugs (see story). Sihuan will gain access to to-BBB’s G-Technology®, a patented delivery system that allows drugs to cross the blood-brain barrier and, at the same time, facilitates sustained release of the active ingredients. Initially, the two companies will perform feasibility studies on certain of Sihuan’s existing drugs. If successful, the tests will lead to a collaborative effort to develop one or more compounds.

Medical Technologies Innovation Asia (MTIA) of Hong Kong in-licensed China rights to a non-invasive, wireless continuous glucose monitoring system developed by Echo Therapeutics (NSDQ: ECTE), a Pennsylvania medical device company (see story). MTIA will manufacture, develop and market the Symphony® CGM System, making a $5 million equity investment in Echo for the rights. At the same time, Echo raised an additional $5 million from affiliates of Platinum Partners, an existing investor that wanted Echo to make a China deal.

Omron Medical Devices obtained China distribution rights to a diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) test device developed by NeuroMetrix (NSDQ: NURO) of Philadelphia (see story). The NC-stat® DPNCheck® test is a point-of-care diagnostic for early detection of DPN, a complication in about half the diabetic population. The licensing is in addition to an earlier partnership between the two companies that gave Omron rights to the device in Japan, where Omron is headquartered.

Company News

ScinoPharm (TWSE: 1789), a Taiwan API and process engineering company, completed construction of a $113 million plant in Changshu, Jiangsu province, China (see story). The facilities include an R&D center for process development and a multipurpose API manufacturing plant. ScinoPharm has already developed nine of China’s top twenty oncology drugs, four of which are approved by the CFDA. The company said the plant will be its China API base, through its products will also serve international markets.

Government and Regulatory

China has agreed to allow ten additional permanent FDA inspectors to be stationed in China (see story). For more than a year, the US has been trying to secure visas for additional personnel, but without success. The agency has allocated $10 million to increase the number of long-term workers from its current level – one – up to eleven. In addition, China promised to fulfill its goals of establishing Drug Master File management for active pharmaceutical ingredients.

A Shanghai municipal official has been removed from his job following unofficial reports that he was involved in the GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) bribery scandal (see story). Fengping Huang was Vice-Director of Shanghai’s Commission of Health and Family. No allegations have been made against Huang, though his name has been removed from the commission’s website. If the GSK connection turns out to be true, Huang would be the first government official to be implicated in the scandal.

Disclosure: none