Vascular Intervention Competition Enters Global Era: Engaging International Experts Emerges as Key Strategy for Market Expansion

This year, China’s high-value consumables sector for vascular interventions has witnessed explosive growth, with multiple leading companies in specialized subfields completing their initial public offerings (IPOs). Starting from scratch, domestic enterprises have significantly advanced their technologies and manufacturing processes over the past two decades, gradually breaking the monopoly held by foreign companies.

As multiple companies complete their initial public offerings, China’s high-value consumables sector for vascular intervention enters a new phase of development. If the primary breakthrough for domestic enterprises in the previous stage was breaking monopolies, then diversification and internationalization represent two new strategic directions in this emerging phase.

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has observed that numerous Chinese companies have recently intensified their expansion into overseas markets. In their strategies for international growth, collaborating with overseas experts has become a key foothold for market entry. Companies such as Acotec, Venus Medtech, and Peijia Medical have established close partnerships with international experts by inviting them to serve as independent directors or appointing them to expert advisory committees.

Taking acotec, the leading domestic peripheral intervention company, as an example, on October 10, acotec announced that,acotec Expands Its Scientific Advisory Committee by Inviting Four Additional Leading Experts—Professor Peter Schneider, Dr. Matthew T. Menard, Dr. Sahil A. Parikh, and Professor Thomas Zeller

The Scientific Advisory Committee will provide guidance for acotec’s global studies on below-the-knee (BTK) indications in the United States and Europe, and will lead the execution of these studies. Meanwhile, the Scientific Advisory Committee will also offer opinions and feedback to guide acotec’s new product development in the field of peripheral interventions, and will support physician education for acotec in both the Chinese and global markets.

Notably, three of the four newly appointed experts will immediately engage in the U.S. clinical trial application process for acotec’s BTK (below-the-knee drug-coated balloon) product and serve as co-principal investigators (co-PIs). This signals that the U.S. market is gradually opening its doors to acotec.

As Chinese companies increasingly expand overseas and collaborate with international experts, what role do these experts play in the global expansion of vascular intervention enterprises? How can domestic companies leverage such collaborations to strengthen their presence in overseas markets? VCBeat analyzes this trend.

Being recognized by overseas experts, to some extent, highlights the global influence of domestic enterprises.

In the past, Chinese companies were often defined as followers in innovation rather than global innovation leaders. Now, this stereotype is gradually being overturned, as evidenced by the growing number of overseas experts choosing to collaborate with Chinese firms, indicating that their R&D capabilities are also recognized internationally.

Taking acotec as an example, two members of its Scientific Advisory Committee are internationally recognized leading experts in the field of vascular intervention: Professor Dierk Scheinert and Dr. Peter Schneider.

Professor Dierk Scheinert is the Medical Director and Head of the Center for Vascular Medicine, Angiology, and Vascular Surgery at Leipzig University Hospital. He enjoys an international reputation for his expertise in coronary and peripheral endovascular interventions. Professor Dierk Scheinert is the co-founder of the Leipzig Interventional Course (LINC) and has served as its Director since 2005.

Dr. Peter Schneider is a Professor of Surgery in the Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. He serves as Co-Director and a member of the Steering Committee for VIVA (Vascular InterVentions Advances), one of the largest annual multidisciplinary vascular educational conferences in the United States for physicians and healthcare professionals. Furthermore, he has provided consultation on regulatory pathways and pivotal trials for numerous vascular devices, participated in multiple meetings with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and testified at FDA panel hearings. He has also served as the Principal Investigator (PI) for several drug-coated balloon (DCB) trials in the United States, including the IN.PACT Admiral trial by Medtronic for the treatment of superficial femoral artery disease.

These top-tier experts, who collaborate with international giants, can join the advisory ranks for vascular interventions in China. First, corporate products must possess sufficient competitiveness; second, Chinese companies need to have certain capabilities in overseas market operations and a accumulation of overseas resources, so as to gain recognition from overseas experts.

Acotec’s ability to gain recognition from multiple top-tier industry experts is related to its early accumulation of overseas expert resources. According to Acotec’s prospectus,The founding team of acotec previously held senior executive positions at Invatec (acquired by Medtronic), bringing extensive global business management and operational experience, as well as distinct advantages in expanding overseas expert resources.。

The other three newly joined experts serve as co-principal investigators (co-PIs) for acotec’s U.S. regulatory submission of its BTK drug-coated balloon (DCB).

Dr. Matthew T. Menard of the United States has been named a Castle Connolly Top Doctor, one of the highest honors and most prestigious awards for physicians in the U.S. He specializes in vascular surgery. Dr. Menard serves as the Director of the Vascular and Endovascular Fellowship Program and Co-Director of the Endovascular Surgery Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), affiliated with Harvard Medical School. He is also the Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) for the Best Endovascular versus Best Surgical Therapy in Patients with Critical Limb Ischemia (BEST-CLI) trial.

Dr. Sahil A. Parikh serves as the Director of Vascular Medicine Services at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, specializing in interventional therapies for atherosclerotic vascular disease and the entire circulatory system. He is the regional and national principal investigator (PI) for multiple clinical trials and has authored more than 50 original manuscripts and commentaries in basic and clinical cardiovascular medicine.

Professor Thomas Zeller is an internationally recognized expert in vascular intervention, with a research focus on the development and testing of new technologies for complex endovascular interventions. He led the U.S. approval of Medtronic’s IN.PACT Admiral drug-coated balloon (DCB) for the treatment of femoropopliteal artery disease.

In addition to expert endorsement, Acotec’s BTK DCB product has been granted “Breakthrough Device” designation by the U.S. FDA. Products receiving this designation have gained a first-mover advantage in approval speed compared to others. This designation confers two significant benefits: accelerated regulatory review and immediate inclusion in insurance coverage upon approval.

Acotec’s BTK DCB product addresses the current therapeutic gaps in below-the-knee (BTK) lesions, offering a new option for complex BTK cases. It is currently the only BTK DCB product approved for marketing in China and the only product worldwide to have achieved positive clinical study results in the BTK field.

Currently, the U.S. market sees approximately 200,000 below-the-knee (BTK) interventional procedures annually, far exceeding China’s current volume of lower-extremity interventions. However, the primary product used in BTK interventions remains the conventional balloon. In the United States, newly approved therapies rapidly penetrate the market, as both physicians and payers actively promote their adoption. This demonstrates thatOnce acotec’s BTK drug-coated balloon successfully gains approval, it may become the only approved product in its class, capturing a significant share of the market.

Overall, collaboration with overseas experts can accelerate product launches and secure a competitive market advantage in the short term. In the long run, overseas advisors can provide guidance on R&D directions, enhance the R&D capabilities of domestic enterprises, and drive the emergence of more globally innovative products.

Under new development trends, globalization has become a new goal for domestic high-value medical consumables companies. The overseas market is a new battlefield for Chinese enterprises to explore. Expanding into overseas markets requires long-term planning and layout, as well as continuous practical strategic advancement. Overseas expert resources are the “lever” to pry open overseas markets, playing an important role in promoting technological innovation and global product layout of domestic enterprises. Winning the recognition of overseas experts essentially relies on solid R&D capabilities. Only by continuously launching commercial initiatives based on strong R&D capabilities can companies avoid being left behind in the tide of the times.