Did you know?

ChinaBio® Group is a consulting and advisory firm helping life science companies and investors achieve success in China. ChinaBio works with U.S., European and APAC companies and investors seeking partnerships, acquisitions, novel technologies and funding in China.  

Learn more >>

Free Newsletter

Have the latest stories on China's life science industry delivered to your inbox daily or weekly - free!

  Email address:
   

Week in Review: China Pharma Financing Deals

publication date: Jan 30, 2016
 | 
author/source: Richard Daverman, PhD

Deals and Financings

CARsgen Therapeutics, a Shanghai company developing CAR-T immunotherapies for solid tumors, completed a $30 million Series B round (see story). CARsgen is currently conducting Phase I trials of two CAR-T immunotherapies: one for brain cancer and the other for liver cancer. The company's latest round was led by KTB Ventures, a Korean venture fund, and Jolly Innovation Ventures, which is backed by China's Jolly Pharma. Kaitai Capital and JIC Genesis Fountain Healthcare Ventures participated. 

Adagene, a Suzhou company developing mono-specific and bi-specific antibodies, announced a $28 million Series B financing led by GP Healthcare Capital (see story). Adagene said it would use the capital to advance several programs into clinical proof of concept, and to support discovery of novel therapies for unmet needs. The company develops its own portfolio of candidates and also collaborates with international biopharmas to discover promising antibodies. 

Fujian Thai Hot Investment Co. remains in negotiations to acquire 51.5% of Alliance HealthCare Services (NSDQ: AIQ), a US company that provides outsourced radiology, oncology and interventional services (see story). Once it gains control, Thai Hot plans to expand Alliance's services to China. Thai Hot offered $102.5 million for the stake, at a price of $18.50 per share, from selling shareholders. Although most government approvals have been granted, a few closing conditions are still outstanding, and the two groups extended their provisional agreement until the end of February. 

Qiming Venture Partners, a China-focused venture firm is expected to close its fifth US dollar fund tomorrow, with at least $650 million in capital commitments, according to media reports (see story). The company's latest initiative, which joins three RMB-denominated and the four previous dollar funds, will bring Qiming's total assets under management to more than $2.3 billion. Qiming said it invests about 40% of its capital -- over $600 million to date -- in life science companies. 

Joincare Pharmaceutical (SHA: 600328) of Shenzhen will invest $30 million in Apricot Forest, a mobile medical application that provides services to medical doctors and makes doctors appointments for patients (see story). With the investment, Joincare will have a 15% stake in Apricot Forest. The investment is part of Apricot Forest's D round and values the company at $200 million. According to media reports, Joincare will cooperate with Apricot Forest on healthcare products and services, as well as back-end platforms. 

To promote innovation, Shanghai is floating a draft proposal to compensate angel investors for losses (see story). Here's how it works: the program will cover up to 60% of losses, with a maximum payoff of $460,000 for any one project. Very early stage investments will be limited to half that, suggesting payouts are based on the maturity level of the startup. A single angel investor will be limited to $920,000 in a particular year. Presumably, there will also be standards to determine whether a project is innovative, though press reports did not discuss that issue. And, of course, the projects must be based in Shanghai.  

Trials and Approvals

Athenex, a US-China cancer company, received FDA permission to start US clinical trials of its oral formulation of the  chemotherapy docetaxel (see story). Athenex developed Oradoxel using P-glycoprotein (Pgp) pump inhibitor technology that it in-licensed from South Korea's Hanmi Pharma. Oradoxel is the third clinical program developed from the Pgp technology and the company's sixth cancer drug approved for US clinical trials. In October 2015, Athenex struck a deal with Chongqing, China to build two manufacturing plants there. Athenex has also established a joint lab with Hong Kong Polytechnic University, which did much of the work on Oradoxel. 

Disclosure: none


 

Share this with colleagues:

 

ChinaBio® News

Greg Scott BIO-Europe Interview
Greg Scott Interviewed at BIO-Europe Spring

How to bring your China assets to China in 8 minutes


Greg Scott Mendelspod Interview
"Mr. Bio in China."
Mendelspod Interview

Multinational pharma held to a higher standard in China

Partner Event
November 2-3, 2023 | Shanghai
November 7-8, 2023 | Digital