- Innovent leads Suzhou park’s export surge with $10.5 billion Pfizer collaboration
- Knowledge-intensive services increasingly underpin China’s export growth
Suzhou’s BioBAY biopharma park has seen a surge in overseas deals this year, with cumulative contract value topping $26.6 billion through May, more than five times last year’s total.
The growth is fueled by high-value strategic partnerships and the park’s focus on proprietary intellectual property.
The most notable deal came in late May, when Innovent Biologics (信达生物) signed a global collaboration with Pfizer covering 12 early-stage oncology and novel discovery programs, Innovent revealed in a Hong Kong exchange filing on May 29.
Upfront plus milestones
Innovent will receive $650 million upfront, with potential milestones reaching $9.85 billion.
The portfolio spans antibody-drug conjugates and multi-specific antibodies, with four lead programs jointly developed and commercialized in the US and Europe, while Innovent retains rights in Greater China.
“This marks our fourth marquee outbound deal in less than two years,” an Innovent spokesperson said. Earlier agreements include collaborations with Takeda, Eli Lilly, and Roche, bringing cumulative deal value with global pharma giants to over $30 billion.
Other BioBAY companies are also seeing strong overseas traction. In January, MediLink Therapeutics (宜联生物) inked an exclusive license with Roche for its B7H3-targeting ADC, securing $570 million upfront plus near-term milestones.
In February, SanegeneBio (圣因生物) partnered with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, on RNAi drug development, with $200 million upfront and up to $1.5 billion in potential payments.
License-out deals
Knowledge-intensive services, including cross-border pharmaceutical licensing deals and commercialization agreements, are emerging as a key driver of China’s trade growth.
According to the Ministry of Commerce, China exported 1.1 trillion yuan in such services through April, accounting for 44.4% of the country’s service trade and rising 11.7% year-on-year.
