A trio of Chinese biotechs have filed to go public, setting the stage for offerings that could fill the coffers of companies that have big deals with Bristol Myers Squibb and Takeda.
The Takeda partner, Ascentage Pharma, filed to list its stock on the U.S. Nasdaq exchange late last year. The biotech updated its filing Tuesday with expectations for the listing, predicting that the offering will net around $134 million. Ascentage has earmarked up to $60 million to pursue approval of the cancer drug lisaftoclax in China and up to $40 million to develop the kinase inhibitor olverembatinib in the U.S.
Olverembatinib helped put Ascentage on the map last year when Takeda secured an option on the asset outside mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and Russia. Takeda paid $100 million for the option. The value of the deal could swell to $1.3 billion if Takeda exercises the option and hits the milestones.
Ascentage already trades on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and could soon be joined by two biotechs that submitted IPO paperwork Tuesday. Sichuan Biokin Pharmaceutical, best-known in the West through its U.S. subsidiary SystImmune, originally filed (PDF) to list its shares in Hong Kong last summer. At the time, Bloomberg reported the IPO could raise $500 million.
Biokin never executed the offering and has now resubmitted its paperwork. Most of the information in the two submissions is the same, but Biokin has added (PDF) details about the partnership between BMS and SystImmune. BMS paid SystImmune $800 million upfront for ex-China rights to an EGFRxHER3 bispecific in 2023.
The updated filing reveals the previously disclosed $500 million in near-term payments are tied to two milestones. BMS will pay $250 million if a phase 2 or 3 study starts in first- or second-line patients in the U.S. by the end of 2025. The Big Pharma will pay another $250 million if a first-line phase 3 trial starts in the U.S. by the end of 2026.
Biokin filed its paperwork on the same day as Shanghai Bao Pharmaceuticals, a biotech that is seeking (PDF) cash to advance five clinical-stage candidates. The pipeline includes a long-acting fertility hormone that “a century-old pharmaceutical company renowned for its commitment to women’s health” has licensed for up to $182 million. Bao has landed other deals on the strength of its subcutaneous antibody tech.