Fosun's Yao Pharma invests big in global reach, by Wang Fangqing

As a major member of Fosun Pharma family, Chongqing-based Yao Pharma is a key part of Fosun Pharma’s global strategy.

Almost a year after Yao Pharma launched the generic version of AstraZeneca’s antipsychotic drug Seroquel XR (quetiapine) in Canada, in early September it received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to sell a generic version of Effexor (venlafaxine tablets), Pfizer’s widely prescribed antidepressant, in the US.

The approval made Yao Pharma one of the few FDA-approved Chinese manufacturers who are entitled to sell finished drugs, rather than active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), in the USA.