ZSPH and Qilu Pharma Forge Strategic Partnership to Unlock Commercial Potential of RAY1225, a Novel GLP-1/GIP Dual Agonist

Zhonghong News NetworkAt the beginning of the New Year, following the successful inclusion of the innovative influenza drug Aroladewei Tablets into the medical insurance system,Zhongsheng PharmaceuticalMore Good News! On January 16, 2026, Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical released the "Announcement on the Licensing Agreement for the RAY1225 Injection Project Signed by its Holding Subsidiary." The company’s innovative drug, RAY1225 Injection, a super-long-acting GLP-1/GIP dual-target receptor agonist, has been commercially licensed to Qilu Pharmaceutical, with the upfront payment secured. This milestone not only helps maximize the commercial value of RAY1225 in China but also allows the company to reinvest the upfront payment into advancing its R&D pipeline, achieving a positive cycle of product development – commercialization – and further development.

Leveraging Qilu Pharmaceutical's Excellent Commercialization Capabilities, RAY1225 Maximizes Commercial Value

On January 16, 2026, raynovent, a subsidiary of Guangdong Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "raynovent"), held a strategic cooperation signing ceremony with Qilu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Qilu Pharmaceutical"). They jointly announced the signing of a licensing agreement for the innovative drug RAY1225 injection, a super-long-acting agonist targeting GLP-1/GIP dual receptors. raynovent authorized Qilu Pharmaceutical to manufacture and commercially sell RAY1225 injection in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, while retaining all rights, ownership, and interests of the licensed intellectual property. Meanwhile, raynovent still holds all rights, ownership, and interests of RAY1225 injection outside of China.

Qilu Pharmaceutical has rich sales experience and excellent commercialization capabilities. Relying on Qilu Pharmaceutical's comprehensive advantages such as extensive market coverage across the entire pharmaceutical industry and professional promotion capabilities, this lays a solid foundation for both parties to establish a strong and win-win strategic partnership. This collaboration will help leverage the leading product advantages of raynovent’s RAY1225 injection and Qilu Pharmaceutical’s powerful commercialization strengths, further accelerating the commercialization process of RAY1225 injection in China and effectively meeting the significant clinical demand in the country.

Under the terms of the agreement, Raynovent will receive a total of RMB 10 billion in upfront and milestone payments, including an upfront payment of RMB 2 billion and development and sales milestones totaling up to RMB 8 billion. After the product is launched, Raynovent will also be entitled to double-digit royalties on the net sales of the licensed product. Meanwhile, Raynovent will continue to be responsible for advancing the clinical development and registration of relevant indications within the cooperation region.

Regarding this authorization, some investors may wonder whether Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical has lost its leading rights to RAY1225 Injection? However, the announcement clearly states, "Raynovent retains all rights, ownership, and interests of the licensed intellectual property. After the licensed product receives marketing approval from the drug regulatory authorities, Raynovent or its affiliates will be the Marketing Authorization Holder (MAH)." According to China’s MAH system, the holder can sell the drugs for which they have obtained a drug registration certificate either independently or through a contracted drug distribution company.

Overall, Qilu Pharmaceutical has strong commercialization capabilities, with a full-range sales network and professional promotion abilities, which can maximize the commercial value of RAY1225 injection. Delegating specialized tasks to specialized individuals also helps Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical focus on research and development. Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical stated that after receiving the upfront payment, it will reinvest in the research and development of innovative drugs. This will allow the company to enter a new phase of value realization, injecting robust cash flow and development confidence into the continuous R&D of innovative drugs.

RAY1225 has already gained significant attention due to its low dosage, excellent efficacy, and biweekly formulation advantages.

The new version of the National Medical Insurance Drug Catalog has been officially implemented since January 1, 2026. This update of the medical insurance catalog has achieved significant results in enhancing the benefits for patients with chronic diseases and key illnesses. Tirzepatide from Eli Lilly, as the world's first GLP-1/GIP dual-target receptor agonist, demonstrated remarkable advantages across multiple clinical indicators such as blood sugar control, weight management, and cardio-renal protection, and was successfully included in the National Medical Insurance Catalog for the first time this year.

Compared with tirzepatide products currently on the market, RAY1225 Injection from Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical has more significant differentiated advantages. RAY1225 Injection is administered biweekly, features high safety, and demonstrates superior effectiveness compared to tirzepatide based on available data. Specifically, on one hand, RAY1225 Injection is a GLP-1/GIP dual-target biweekly formulation, reducing the dosing frequency by half compared to drugs like tirzepatide, and it also has the potential for once-a-month administration, which is one of the product's most notable features, improving patient compliance. On the other hand, Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical emphasizes safe weight loss and adheres to a gradual dose escalation regimen starting from a low dose, which maximizes patient tolerance. Phase II clinical trial data shows that RAY1225 Injection at doses of 3–9mg demonstrated good safety and tolerability in participants of the REBUILDING-1 and SHINING-1 trials, with mild gastrointestinal-related adverse reactions and an incidence rate lower than the reported data for tirzepatide in the SURMOUNT-CN and SURPASS-AP-Combo studies.

RAY1225 Injection has now covered two core indications: obesity/overweight and type 2 diabetes. All phase III clinical trial work is proceeding steadily, with all participants already enrolled. Notably, its new indication for treating metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH) has been successfully approved for clinical trials, further expanding the future indication matrix.

RAY1225, the "black tech" in the obesity treatment field, is heading towards a billion-dollar market space.

Currently, from a global market perspective, in the first three quarters of 2025, the global sales of GLP-1RA drugs reached nearly 55 billion USD, with the market size continuing to grow. Among them, Novo Nordisk's semaglutide achieved global sales of 25.462 billion USD, while Eli Lilly's tirzepatide caught up rapidly, reaching global sales of 24.837 billion USD, representing a year-on-year increase of 125%, significantly driving the growth process of this class of drugs. According to Jefferies' forecast, by 2031, the global market size of GLP-1RA drugs is expected to exceed 150 billion USD, indicating that the market still holds enormous potential. In particular, the weight loss market is expected to enter a high growth phase after 2025, becoming the core driving force for overall market expansion.

In China, the growth potential of GLP-1RA drugs is equally remarkable. Due to the relatively late launch of GLP-1 inhibitors from overseas in the Chinese market, the performance of GLP-1 drugs has shown some lag. However, the current trend indicates that the market is still in the early stages of an explosion. By 2024, the market size of GLP-1RAs has reached 10.5 billion yuan. According to Frost & Sullivan's forecast, the market size of GLP-1RA in China is expected to reach 51.5 billion yuan by 2030, showing a rapid development trend.

Since June 2024, the National Health Commission, in collaboration with multiple departments, has launched a three-year "Weight Management Year" campaign, making "weight management" a hot topic of national concern. Against this backdrop, RAY1225 Injection, with its differentiated advantages and the support of a strong commercialization partner, is expected to secure a leading position in China's market, which has hundreds of billions of potential, becoming a "star product" in this field in the future.

Special Statement: The content mentioned in the article is all derived from publicly available information and does not constitute substantive investment advice. Readers assume full risk for any actions taken based on this information.