Bayer Triggers Price War, Qilu Follows Suit, Striking Luye Pharma's Achilles' Heel

December 2,Qilu Pharmaceutical's 4mg Aflibercept inShanxi Province Medical Device Centralized Bidding and Procurement NetworkActive price reduction,The listed price has been reduced from 2,970 yuan to 2,470 yuan.A single breath dropped by 16.8%.

According to reports from the Jian Shi Ju, Qilu Pharmaceutical's price reduction should have already been in effect for some time. On October 31, documents released by Liaoning Province showed that Qilu’s Aflibercept had already dropped in price. Industry insiders revealed that as early as October this year,Bayer's original 2mg Aflibercept drops from 4100 yuan to around 2900 yuan。Qilu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. should also start considering price adjustment from this point.

But this round of price cuts by Bayer and Qilu hit the vital spot of Luye Pharma.

On November 26, the aflibercept biosimilar developed by BoAn Biotech, a subsidiary of Luye Pharma, was approved for marketing.Becoming the second approved product in China.Shandong BoAn Biotechnology Co. Ltd. stayed ahead of the curve by signing an exclusive promotion agreement with Ocumension Therapeutics, an ophthalmic innovative drug company, as early as 2020. Ocumension Therapeutics will be responsible for the promotion of Aflibercept. Now that the product has just been launched, the two "older brothers" have already lowered their prices to seize the market, and the days ahead are expected to be challenging.

Qilu's price reduction this time coincides with the right timing, which can be considered as seizing the best situation to stabilize its position one step ahead.

Original Research Fires the First Shot in the Price War

Aflibercept, jointly developed by Regeneron and Bayer, was approved for marketing in the United States in 2011 for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, and other fundus diseases.In 2024, AfliberceptOriginal Research DrugGlobal sales reached $9.5 billion,Important Varieties in the Field of Ophthalmology。

However, in the Chinese market, aflibercept was introduced relatively late and was not approved for marketing until 2017. Its market share in China was once much lower than that of ranibizumab and conbercept. It was not until 2019, when aflibercept was included in the medical insurance and its price dropped to 4,100 yuan per dose, that its sales began to grow rapidly.According to data from MoxEntropy Pharmaceuticals, its sales exceeded 900 million yuan in 2024.In the field of ophthalmology, it is second only to Conbercept and Ranibizumab.

As the patent for Aflibercept expires, pharmaceutical companies in China have rushed into this vast market. Qilu Pharmaceutical was the first to succeed.December 2023，Qilu Pharmaceutical's Aflibercept Biosimilar Approved for Marketing in China.

Qilu Pharmaceutical, previously focused on the production of generic chemical drugs, has recently "emerged with brilliance," developing several biosimilars that have caused a stir in the Chinese market. Just in the ophthalmology field, Qilu has adopted an "encircling" R&D strategy, simultaneously preparing two drugs: Aflibercept and Ranibizumab. In August 2024, Qilu secured the first domestically produced biosimilar of Ranibizumab in China.

Ranibizumab has been the王牌 drug in the field of ophthalmology for 20 years and remains the first-line treatment for macular degeneration.Qilu Pharmaceutical Secures Biosimilars of Both Aflibercept and Ranibizumab, Establishing Its Position in Ophthalmology。Data shows that the sales of these two products have reached hundreds of millions of yuan in the first half of 2025.

After the emergence of Qilu Pharmaceutical's similar drug, Bayer felt the pressure from Chinese companies. Previously, Bayer's original Eylea (Aflibercept) had been stable at 4,100 yuan per vial. In October this year, Bayer suddenly reduced the price of Aflibercept to around 2,900 yuan, possibly because Bayer anticipated that the second Aflibercept biosimilar would soon hit the market. Sure enough, two months later, the market welcomed a new player—Luye Pharma.

Luye Pharma had no prior presence in the ophthalmology field, so it secured a strong partner early on—Ocumension Therapeutics—which is responsible for the exclusive promotion of the product in mainland China. Ocumension Therapeutics specializes in ophthalmic drugs and is regarded by many in the industry as the "King of Ophthalmology in China."In the semi-annual report, Ocumension disclosed that it has covered 21,535 hospitals and has 21 products in the commercialization stage.This means that it has long possessed mature sales channels and clinical resources in the field of fundus diseases. For Luye Pharma and its subsidiary BoAn Biotechnology, leveraging such a partner is undoubtedly a smart choice to quickly establish a foothold.

There are also aflibercept biosimilars developed by Chinese companies lining up to enter the market: Jingze Biotech's similar product has already entered clinical trials, and the fastest-progressing Maiwei Biotech has even submitted an application for market approval in September this year.

Now,Whether it is Bayer or Qilu,To considerMarket CapacityProblem。

The field of fundus diseases is also becoming competitive.

The pace of new drug development in the field of ophthalmology is slow. Aflibercept and Ranibizumab are both products that have passed their patent periods, and innovative varieties have only been gradually introduced in the past two years. At this transitional moment, Qilu Pharmaceutical's strategic layout is very appropriate, filling the current market gap.

However, the major trend in pharmaceutical development is the continuous pursuit of innovation. Although the target of VEGF in the eye is difficult to breakthrough, many companies have still found solutions. In 2022, Roche launchedFaricimab, this is the world's first ANG2/VEGF-A bispecific antibody, touted as a strong challenger to Aflibercept.。Faricimab can significantly reduce fundus exudation, stabilize vascular structure, and extend the dosing interval to once every 4 months.

Regeneron has also followed up by launching the 8mg high-dose version of aflibercept, reducing the dosing frequency to once every four months. In this aspect, biosimilars in China have not kept up.

However, many strong challengers are already on the way. Innovent Biologics has developed the VEGF/CR1 fusion protein IBI302, and Phase II clinical data shows that, in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration, the visual improvement effect is non-inferior to aflibercept. Notably,IBI302 has launched a head-to-head clinical trial, directly challenging faricimab.

RC28, developed by Rongchang Bio, is a VEGF/FGF dual-target fusion protein capable of simultaneously inhibiting the VEGF and FGF-2 pathways, with the potential to exert synergistic effects in anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, and anti-neovascularization aspects.On September 30, RC28 was submitted for marketing authorization application (MAA) for the treatment of diabetic macular edema.It is expected to join the "battlefield" of ophthalmic drugs soon.

The VEGF market in ophthalmology has gradually shifted from being dominated by foreign enterprises to being led by domestic companies. Even major foreign players like Novartis have lost ground, selling their ophthalmology products in China to Pharmstandard. In the future, competition may not just be about price, as new drugs are also adopting a more market-friendly approach. By 2025, Faricimab will enter China's national medical insurance catalog, with its price per injection significantly dropping from 9,000 yuan to 3,608 yuan.According to the hospital sales data from PharmaCube, in the second quarter of this year, FaricimabMonth-on-monthSales increased by nearly 2.5 times.

Patients with macular degeneration and other fundus diseases are mainly elderly people, who are price-sensitive, have low compliance, and their accessibility to medical treatment is also quite limited. In order for biosimilars to build up competitive advantages through differentiation, they must not only be more affordable in price but also achieve deeper channel coverage.

By reporter Taozhi Fang

Editor: Jiang Yun, Jia Ting

Operation｜Twenty-thirteen

Illustration｜Visual China

Statement: Original content by Jian Shi Ju, please do not reprint without permission.

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