Hansoh Pharma Inks $460M siRNA Therapy Deal with OliX Pharmaceuticals for China

SHANGHAI, China and SUWON, South Korea, October 12, 2021 – Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Company Limited (Stock Code: 03692.HK), a leading innovation-driven pharmaceutical company in China, and OliX Pharmaceuticals (Stock Code: 226950), a leading enterprise in the RNAi therapeutics field, today jointly announced the signing of a license and collaboration agreement for the discovery, development, and commercialization of siRNA therapies targeting key indications in China. As part of the collaboration agreement, the two companies will leverage OliX Pharmaceuticals’ GalNAc-asiRNA platform and Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group’s robust research and development, manufacturing, and commercialization capabilities in China to develop multiple hepatocyte-targeted products, covering areas including cardiovascular, metabolic, and other indications.

Pursuant to this collaboration agreement, OliX Pharmaceuticals will leverage its GalNAc-asiRNA technology platform to discover lead compounds and advance the development of candidate drugs targeting specific targets, covering therapeutic areas including cardiovascular, metabolic, and other liver-related diseases. Hansoh Pharma will hold exclusive commercialization rights for these therapies in China, while OliX Pharmaceuticals will retain rights in all territories outside China. OliX Pharmaceuticals will receive an upfront payment of $6.5 million and up to $450 million in milestone-based payments and royalties.

Ms. Sun Yuan, Executive Director of Hansoh Pharma, stated: "We are very pleased to partner with OliX Pharmaceuticals, a leader in siRNA drug development with a mature clinical-stage portfolio. OliX Pharmaceuticals' innovative GalNAC-asiRNA platform enables us to leverage gene silencing technology to address the broad unmet medical needs in China, and we look forward to utilizing their technology platform throughout the drug development process."

Dr. Dong-Ki Lee, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of OliX Pharmaceuticals, said：“We are delighted to partner with one of China's largest biopharmaceutical companies. This collaboration marks our platform's first partnership with a major pharmaceutical company. Our technology platform has already demonstrated robust potential across multiple indications, and our NASH compound has recently yielded exciting preclinical data. We believe this is just the beginning for our advanced technology. Looking ahead, we look forward to leveraging Hansoh Pharma's proven clinical development and commercialization capabilities, along with our research to date, to fully utilize our proprietary GalNAc-asiRNA technology platform and accelerate the development of key drug candidates.”

About Asymmetric Small Interfering RNA Technology

Asymmetric small interfering RNA (asiRNA) technology is a next-generation RNA interference technology that effectively modulates gene expression. Compared with existing siRNA therapies, OliX Pharmaceuticals' asymmetric small interfering RNA technology demonstrates comparable gene silencing efficacy while significantly reducing siRNA-mediated adverse effects such as off-target effects and immune activation.

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