Chinese biotechs want global market on self-controlled supply chain

Two frequent words that people often hear in recent China’s pharma industry comments are “Chu Hai” and “Nei Juan”. The former means “selling overseas,” while the latter means “cut throat competition.”

Competition is no doubt fierce in China. Take GLP1 receptor agonists (GLP RA) as an example. The popular diabetes treatment that doubles as a weight loss drug now has over 200 candidates in clinical studies in China, according to China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). It is no wonder that how to get new drug application (NDA) approvals in markets outside China and how to make money from foreign clients were the major topics among speakers at the Bio China event held in Suzhou in mid-March.

“We already saw a slew of out-licensing deals of ADCs from China in the past year. Licensing is the start of going global,” said Hua Haiqing, vice president of DualityBio, a Shanghai-based biotech known for ADC drug development.