China Securities Journal, cs.com.cn (Reporter: Meng Peijia) - On July 15, Sino Biopharm announced that it will acquire a 95.09% stake in Shanghai-based LaNova Medicines for a total price of approximately USD 500 million. Combined with the 4.91% stake acquired through participation in LaNova's Series C financing, LaNova Medicines will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sino Biopharm upon completion of the transaction. The main R&D and management teams of LaNova Medicines, as well as its R&D platforms for bispecific antibodies, ADCs, etc., will also join Sino Biopharm.

Miss Theresa Tse, Chairwoman of the Board of Sino Biopharm, stated that LaNova Medicines has an outstanding and efficient R&D team and a highly valuable innovative pipeline, filling multiple clinical gaps in areas such as lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancers, and autoimmune diseases. The addition of LaNova Medicines will significantly enhance Sino Biopharm's core competitiveness and international influence in the field of innovative cancer therapy.

Nearly 30 Billion in Out-Licensing Deals Cumulatively

According to reports, LaNova Medicines, established in Shanghai in 2019, is an innovative drug R&D company focusing on First-in-Class and Best-in-Class products. Its multiple innovative assets have attracted competing interest from multinational pharmaceutical companies. Currently, LaNova Medicines has 7 projects in the clinical stage and nearly 20 preclinical projects. It possesses four proprietary R&D platforms: antibody, ADC, T-cell Engager (TCE), and tumor microenvironment. It has achieved two major out-licensing deals with MNCs and has the experience and capability to conduct clinical trials in China, the United States, and Australia.

On May 12, 2023, LaNova Medicines entered into an exclusive global licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for the novel GPRC5D-targeting ADC LM-305, with an upfront payment of USD 55 million and a total transaction value of USD 600 million. GPRC5D is an emerging immune target for Multiple Myeloma. LM-305 initiated a global multi-center Phase I trial in December 2023, making it the first GPRC5D-targeting ADC to enter clinical stage, with the potential to become a first-in-class drug.

In November 2024, LaNova Medicines reached an agreement with MSD, granting the latter exclusive global rights to its self-developed PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody LM-299, for a total transaction value of USD 3.288 billion, including USD 888 million in upfront and technology transfer milestone payments. The PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody has shown good efficacy in solid tumors including non-small cell lung cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, and breast cancer. Once successfully developed, this target has the potential to become a core product in the next generation of cancer immunotherapy. LM-299 uses a tetravalent IgG-VHH structure and has shown excellent synergistic effects and safety in preclinical studies. It is currently undergoing Phase I/II clinical trials in China.

To date, LaNova Medicines has cumulatively out-licensed deals worth nearly USD 4 billion, equivalent to nearly RMB 30 billion. It also has nearly 20 projects in the early stages, all of which have strong potential for international out-licensing.

Accelerating the Internationalization Process

According to the announcement, the sale price for the 95.09% stake in LaNova Medicines is not to exceed USD 950 million. After deducting the USD 450 million in cash held by LaNova Medicines, the payment amount for the acquisition by Sino Biopharm is approximately USD 500 million.

As early as August 2024, Sino Biopharm participated in Series C1 financing of LaNova Medicines with RMB 142 million, acquiring a 4.91% stake in the latter. The two parties also reached a strategic cooperation in mainland China for LM-108 and potentially multiple innovative bispecific antibodies or ADCs.

It is understood that among LaNova's assets, in addition to LM-305 and LM-299, assets such as LM-108, LM-302, and LM-168 all have FIC or BIC potential, with leading clinical development progress and significant competitive advantages for out-licensing.

Meanwhile, Sino Biopharm previously stated that its own pipeline, including late-stage clinical assets like PDE3/4, HER2 bispecific antibody, HER2 bispecific ADC, and FGF21, as well as early-stage projects like EGFR/cMET ADC, fourth-generation EGFR, oral GLP-1, and PDE4b, also possesses strong internationalization potential. Analysts stated that this acquisition of LaNova Medicines by Sino Biopharm is expected to further strengthen Sino Biopharm's innovative R&D capabilities, expand its pipeline, and accelerate its internationalization process.