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Week in Review: Big Week for Cross-Border Life Science Deals

publication date: Oct 1, 2016
 | 
author/source: Richard Daverman, PhD

Deals and Financings

South Korea's Hanmi Pharma (KRX:128940) sold global rights (ex-Korea) for its pan-RAF inhibitor, HM95573, to Genentech, a unit of Roche (SIX: ROG), in an $910 million deal (see story). Hanmi will receive $80 million upfront and double digit royalties on sales of certain products covered by the agreement. Further details were not provided. Hanmi has been spectacularly successful in finding partners for its portfolio of innovative drug candidates. During 2015-16, it has signed almost $7 billion of out-licensing deals. 

Ramsay Sime Darby Healthcare, a Malaysian-Australian hospital operator, is in talks to form a $500 million China JV that will own two hospitals (see story). The negotiations have reached the due diligence stage. In addition, Ramsay Sime is also discussing China hospital JVs with two other healthcare companies, though those discussions are at a much earlier level. Ramsay Sime is itself a joint venture between Malaysian conglomerate Sime Darby and Australia’s largest healthcare group, Ramsay Health Care Ltd. 

Neusoft, a China IT company with a medical imaging subsidiary, established a $250 million investment fund with Israel-China private equity firm Infinity Group (see story). The fund will support Israeli medical device companies that want to operate in China. Neusoft will establish a cloud network that will help Israeli companies make connections, and it will also offer its own contacts with med-tech companies and the CFDA. The $250 million will be invested over three years. 

Shanghai Fosun Pharma (SHA: 600196: HK: 2196) formed a $100 million China medical device JV with Intuitive Surgical (NSDQ: ISRG) of Massachusetts (see story). The JV will develop novel robotic-assisted catheter-based medical devices that use Intuitive Surgical's IP, initially for early diagnosis of lung cancer. Intuitive makes the well-known da Vinci suite of minimally-invasive surgical devices. Based in Shanghai, the JV will develop and manufacture the devices for global markets. The JV will also be in charge of China distribution, while Intuitive will be responsible for ex-China sales. 

MicuRx Pharma, a San Francisco-Shanghai antibiotics company, closed a $55 million Series C financing from China investors (see story). MicuRx said the money would be enough to complete clinical development of MRX-I in China and US, including a China filing for approval of the drug. MRX-1 is an oral, next-gen oxazolidinone antibacterial designed to combat drug-resistant infections. The C round was led by GP Healthcare Capital and joined by new investors GP TMT Capital, 3E Bioventures Capital and Delian Capital.  

ReadCoor, a next generation sequencing spin-out from Harvard University, closed an oversubscribed $23 million Series A financing from China-affiliated healthcare investors (see story). The round was led by Decheng Capital and joined by Lilly Asia Ventures, Vivo Capital and Hansjörg Wyss. ReedCoor will commercialize an innovative FISSEQ (fluorescent in situ sequencing) technology that combines sequencing and imaging, simultaneously reading RNA sequences and visualizing their three-dimensional coordinates within whole cells and tissues. 

Huapont Life Sciences (SHA: 002004) of Chongqing in-licensed China rights to an injectible stem cell-based hair regrowth product being developed by San Diego's Histogen (see story). One month ago, Huapoint, though its Pinewood Capital division, made an $6 million investment in Histogen. The investment was part of a D round that expects to raise $18 million.To secure the rights, Huapoint agreed to pay milestones, a transfer price on the product and escalating royalties on sales. 

Zai Lab of Shanghai formed a collaboration with Boston-based TESARO (NSDQ: TSRO) for China development of TESARO's niraparib, a clinical-stage oral PARP inhibitor (see story). Zai will own China rights to niraparib, though development will be guided by a joint committee and TESARO has an option to participate in China commercialization. In addition, TESARO has an option to license two novel discovery-stage immuno-oncology programs from Zai Lab.Zai will make an upfront payment to TESARO, and TESARO will be eligible for milestone payments, both development and sales-related. 

Shijiazhuang Huanzhong Biotech (HZ Biotech) will assemble and market a new women's fertility product in China developed by Concepta of the UK (see story). The My Lotus product consists of test strips and electronic meters that measure a woman's cyclic urinic hormone levels, identifying the most likely time for conception. HZ Biotech will purchase the product from Concepta, market it, and provide post-market surveillance. My Lotus has already been approved by China regulators. 

China BioPharma Capital led a Series C financing in Quantapore, a Bay Area sequencing device company (see story). The financial details were not disclosed. China BioPharma Capital is a life science venture capital fund, based in Hong Kong, whose $50 million in initial capital came entirely from Chongqing Lummy Pharma (SHZ: 300006). The fund is run by TVM Capital Life, a Munich-Montreal-Hong Kong investment firm, and plans to in-license China rights for drugs and devices from its portfolio companies.

Company News

Predicine, a Bay Area precision medicine organization, opened a major R&D facility in Shanghai that offers liquid- and tissue biopsy-based precision diagnostics to China (see story). Predicine describes itself as an international precision medicine company that is committed to developing innovative diagnostics, therapeutics and big data in cancer and other serious diseases. Predicine developed the world's first ctRNA+ctDNA combined liquid biopsy test, called Gene RADAR, which uses a single tube of blood to detect genetic alterations. 

Trials and Approvals

SciClone Pharma (NSDQ: SCLN) of the US announced two clinical trial developments for its portfolio of in-licensed products aimed at the China market (see story). The company's lead product, Zadaxin, an immune system booster, started a Phase III China trial in patients with sepsis. Currently, Zadaxin is used as an adjuvant to treat Hepatitis B or C. The company has also treated the first patient in a Taiwan Phase I trial of PT-112, a platinum-based chemotherapy that has first-in-class potential, according to SciClone. 

CANbridge Life Sciences, a Beijing in-licensing biopharma, announced the first dosing of Taiwan Phase I/II trial of its lead candidate, CAN-008, a treatment for newly-diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) (see story). An immunotherapy, CAN-008 inhibits the CD95 ligand, a member of the tumor necrosis factor family, with the goal of restoring the immune system’s anti-tumor response and inhibiting tumor cell growth. The combined Phase I/II trial will enroll a total of 55 patients. CANbridge expects to report Phase I safety data after mid-2017. 

Disclosure: none.


 

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