Waigaoqiao Biopharma Park Unveiled with BeiGene's Shanghai R&D Center Officially Launched

On November 20, the unveiling ceremony of the Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park and the inauguration of BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center were held in the bonded area of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone. Nine high-caliber biopharmaceutical industry projects were signed and launched, including the BeOne Medicines Shanghai R&D Center, the BeOne Medicines–Artemed Hospital R&D collaboration project, the Hillhouse Ventures Medical Device Park project, the Gaobo Institute for Industrial Translation, the Caribou Investment Cell Therapy Technology Industrial Park project, the Akeso Pharma project, the Fudan Science Park Innovation Center’s public service platform for biomedicine, the Olink proteomics technology project, and Dingxin Gene.

Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park Unveiled

Chen Yanfeng, Deputy Director of the Administrative Committee of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone and Deputy Director of the Waigaoqiao Bonded Zone Administration; Liu Ping, Chief Engineer of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization; Zhang Qing, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Municipal Medical Products Administration; Xu Youqing, Director of the Waigaoqiao Bonded Zone Branch of the Market Supervision and Administration Bureau of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone; Chen Yaobin, Director of the Waigaoqiao Bonded Zone Taxation Bureau of the State Taxation Administration Shanghai Pudong New Area Taxation Bureau; Liu Hong, Chairman of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Group Co., Ltd.; Academician Wang Xiaodong, Founder and Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of BeOne Medicines; Dr. Wu Xiaobin, General Manager of BeOne Medicines China and President of the Company; Dr. Liang Heng, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer of BeOne Medicines; Dr. Wang Lai, Senior Vice President and Head of Global Research and Asia-Pacific Clinical Development at BeOne Medicines; Yi Nuoqing, Co-Chief Investment Officer and Partner at Hillhouse Capital and Member of the Board of Directors of BeOne Medicines; along with other government officials and corporate representatives, attended the event to witness the unveiling of the Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park and the formal signing of projects moving into the park, and jointly celebrated the inauguration of BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center.

Inauguration Ceremony of BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai Pharmaceutical R&D Center

As a key component of Shanghai’s specialized biomedical industrial parks, the Waigaoqiao Biomedical Industrial Park covers a total planned area of 2 square kilometers. It enjoys policy support in areas such as innovative R&D, industrialization, reform pilots, and industry-academia-research-medical collaboration. The park focuses on developing the R&D, translation, and manufacturing value chain for innovative drugs and high-end medical devices, aiming to build a globally influential hub for biomedical innovation.

Speech by Chen Yanfeng, Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone Bonded Area Administration

Chen Yanfeng, Deputy Director of the Administrative Committee of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone and Deputy Director of the Waigaoqiao Bonded Zone Administration, stated in his speech at the event that the unveiling of the Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park and the opening of BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center are concrete measures taken by the bonded zone to implement the directive of “focusing on key sectors to develop innovative industries and accelerating the creation of world-class industrial clusters in integrated circuits, biopharmaceuticals, and artificial intelligence.” These initiatives also represent a significant step forward in promoting the development of the regional biopharmaceutical industry cluster, fostering new growth poles for economic development, and generating new momentum for high-quality regional development. The inauguration of BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center, along with the establishment of high-quality platform projects such as Gaobo Medical and U-Lab, will drive the aggregation of upstream and downstream enterprises in the biopharmaceutical supply chain within the region, thereby injecting fresh development momentum into Waigaoqiao’s biopharmaceutical industry.

Address by Liu Ping, Chief Engineer of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization

As one of the flagship projects of the Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park, BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center was officially inaugurated on that day. Leveraging the cluster effect of the park, the center will focus on addressing the urgent needs of patients in China, capitalize on its strengths in early-stage antibody drug development and translational medicine research, and build a robust pipeline and talent pool for global innovative oncology drug development. Serving as another key engine for BeOne Medicines’ global R&D and innovation, the center will bring together stakeholders across the industry to jointly drive source innovation in China’s biopharmaceutical sector.

Academician Wang Xiaodong, Founder and Chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee at BeOne Medicines, stated, “Over the past decade, China has made significant strides across the board in basic research, new drug development, and talent cultivation. This progress has laid a solid foundation for deepening scientific research and accelerating the translation of research findings into practical applications. I am confident that, with strong attention and robust policy support from the national and local governments, China’s life sciences and biotechnology sectors will achieve substantial growth, contributing more ‘Chinese solutions’ to addressing global health and public health challenges.”

Remarks by Wang Xiaodong, Founder and Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee of BeOne Medicines

BeOne Medicines’ Shanghai R&D Center is the company’s second global research and development hub. It will focus on the development of large-molecule antibody therapeutics for various types of malignant tumors. The center has already established large-scale, high-standard laboratories and created an integrated antibody drug discovery process spanning target validation, antibody discovery, and early-stage chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) process development.Dr. Lai Wang, Senior Vice President of BeOne Medicines and Head of Global Research and Asia-Pacific Clinical Development, stated, “The establishment of the Shanghai R&D Center will further enhance BeOne Medicines’ preclinical research capabilities. Over the next year, the preclinical research team will expand to more than 700 members, enabling the simultaneous exploration of nearly 25 preclinical projects. This will not only provide a long-term pipeline reserve for BeOne Medicines’ new wave of innovation but also strengthen our capacity as a source of original innovation, driving the development of more first-in-class global novel drugs and helping us gain a competitive advantage in the global landscape over the coming decade.”

In a pre-conference interview with VCBeat, Dr. Wang Lai also stated that BeOne Medicines has always prioritized and continuously increased its R&D investment. In particular, the company is committed to conducting global R&D and expanding overseas to maximize the value of its achievements. Over the past two years, BeOne Medicines has been accelerating the build-out of its own clinical operations team. By leveraging an in-house team for operations, the company can effectively reduce clinical operational costs and improve efficiency. “The next decade will be a golden period for the development of China’s pharmaceutical industry. We hope to seize this opportunity to develop certain products and even achieve ‘leadership’ status. This is BeOne Medicines’ dream, and we hope to leverage China’s golden period to realize this dream more rapidly,” said Wang.

Remarks by Wang Lai, Senior Vice President of BeOne Medicines and Head of Global Research and Asia-Pacific Clinical Development

As a key sector of strategic emerging industries, the biopharmaceutical industry is hailed as “the ever-rising sunrise industry.” In recent years, bonded zones have leveraged specialized industrial parks as platforms, capitalizing on their unique “Free Trade Zone + Bonded Zone” advantages and innovative measures to facilitate and liberalize investment and trade. By fully exercising their hub function in connecting domestic and international markets, these zones have attracted a cluster of biopharmaceutical and medical device companies. Currently, there are more than 700 biopharmaceutical enterprises in the bonded zones, including renowned companies such as WuXi AppTec, Runnuo, BeOne Medicines, Sinopharm Holding, Roche Diagnostics, GE Healthcare, Johnson & Johnson Medical, and Pharmaron, as well as pioneering healthcare projects under the expanded opening-up of the service sector, such as Shanghai Artmed Hospital. These entities cover the entire industry chain, encompassing R&D and testing; sales, warehousing, and supply chain management for pharmaceuticals and medical devices; professional technical services; general and specialized hospitals; and medical equipment leasing.

Dr. Wu Xiaobin, General Manager of BeOne Medicines’ China Region and President of the Company, stated: “As a key area for Shanghai’s reform, opening-up, and innovation-driven strategy, Pudong has gathered resources in projects, capital, technology, and talent, becoming one of the core regions in China with the most concentrated biopharmaceutical resources, the most complete industrial chain, and the highest density of high-level talent. Particularly in the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, the biopharmaceutical industry has formed unique scale advantages, providing fertile ground for corporate development. We are optimistic about the development prospects of Pudong and the Waigaoqiao Industrial Park. We hope to leverage the park’s industrial environment to better advance scientific research breakthroughs and talent cultivation, working together with the park and industry partners to enhance the global competitiveness of the biopharmaceutical industry.”

At the park’s unveiling ceremony, the Bonded Zone Administration of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone Administrative Committee and Hillhouse Capital officially signed an agreement. The two parties will jointly allocate resources for enterprises and build a biopharmaceutical ecosystem, further advancing the development of a comprehensive industrial ecosystem centered on medical institutions filed with Good Clinical Practice (GCP) credentials for drug clinical trials, driven by R&D, supported by commercial-scale production, and underpinned by financial capital.

Yi Nuoqing, Co-Chief Investment Officer and Partner at Hillhouse Capital and a member of the Board of Directors of BeOne Medicines, stated, “There is substantial unmet need in China’s pharmaceutical sector, where the exploration and development of innovative biologics play a pivotal role in the overall healthcare system. Currently, strong coupling effects are emerging between the upstream and downstream segments of the healthcare industry. Hillhouse aims to serve as a link and bridge, fostering close collaboration among industry, academia, research, and clinical practice, facilitating optimal resource allocation for industrial development, building an integrated innovation ecosystem, and supporting leading biopharmaceutical companies such as BeOne Medicines in expanding globally, thereby benefiting a broader patient population.”

Yi Nuoqing, Co-Chief Investment Officer and Partner at Hillhouse Capital and Member of the Board of Directors of BeOne Medicines, Delivers Remarks

On the same day, BeOne Medicines and Shanghai Artemed Hospital officially established a comprehensive strategic partnership. The two parties plan to jointly establish the “BeOne-Artemed Institute for Industrial Translation,” which will be dedicated to long-term collaboration in clinical research and translational medicine. This includes the construction and operation of high-level clinical trial centers, clinical discovery of innovative targets and mechanisms, accelerating the efficiency of clinical translation through high-quality clinical trials, and jointly cultivating talent specialized in innovative clinical research.

Centralized Signing Ceremony for Projects Settling in Waigaoqiao Biopharmaceutical Industrial Park