Changxi Pharmaceuticals Completes RMB 80 Million Series B Financing to Advance Inhaled Drug Delivery Platform for Niche Therapeutic Areas

On June 15, VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned that Chance Pharmaceuticals, a Chinese company specializing in inhalation drug delivery system platforms, announced the completion of an RMB 80 million Series B financing round. The round was led by Yipinhong Pharmaceutical, a subsidiary of Yipinhong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., among other investors. The proceeds will be used to advance clinical studies of Chance Pharmaceuticals’ pipeline projects, strengthen its R&D team, and expand its research and development portfolio.

It is reported that Chance Pharmaceuticals secured RMB 10 million in angel investment from Delian Capital in April 2016, and completed a RMB 55 million Series A financing round in January 2018, led by China International Capital Corporation (CICC) Venture Capital, with participation from Kaitai Capital and Delian Capital.

Chance Pharmaceuticals, established in 2015, is a high-tech platform company with expertise in the design and development of inhalation formulations and inhalers. It focuses on leveraging its mature micronization technology, advanced particle engineering formulation platform, and corresponding inhaler design and evaluation platforms to develop and commercialize dry powder inhaler (DPI) products for the treatment of respiratory diseases (such as asthma and COPD) and non-respiratory conditions.

Survey data from the Chinese Asthma Alliance indicates that there are currently approximately 35 million asthma patients in China, with an annual growth rate of 4%. The number of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is nearly 100 million, and the prevalence rate among individuals aged 40 and above reaches as high as 8.2%. The rising patient population has driven the rapid emergence of the domestic inhalation drug market. According to research reports by Ping An Securities, the market for asthma and COPD medications in China is valued at approximately RMB 17 billion.

Regarding the details of this round of financing, VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) conducted an exclusive interview with Dr. Chen Donghao, Founder and CEO of Chance Pharmaceuticals, to analyze from multiple perspectives why the company continues to attract investor interest.

 Dr. Chen Donghao, Founder and CEO of Chance Pharmaceuticals

Inhalation preparations refer to liquid or solid formulations in which the active pharmaceutical ingredient is dissolved or dispersed in a suitable medium and delivered to the lungs as vapor or aerosol to exert local or systemic effects. Compared with tablets, inhalation preparations can directly target the lesion site with fewer adverse reactions. Therefore, inhalation therapy is currently the primary approach for respiratory diseases, offering unparalleled advantages in the treatment of conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

However, since inhaled formulations, particularly dry powder inhalers, are considered high-end drug products that involve complex drug-device combination issues and present high technical barriers, the Chinese market for inhaled formulations is currently almost monopolized by foreign pharmaceutical companies, with domestic enterprises holding less than 5% of the market share. To break this foreign monopoly, Chance Pharmaceuticals has introduced a novel solution for inhaled drug delivery.

Specifically, the core technologies of Chance Pharmaceuticals are manifested in two main aspects: its formulation technology platform and the corresponding inhaler design optimization and evaluation technology platform. “In terms of micronization technology, which is central to dry powder inhalation formulations, Chance possesses not only the traditional and widely accepted jet milling technology but also the more advanced spray drying technology,” stated Dr. Chen Donghao. He explained that dry powder particles prepared using this technology enable patients to deliver drug molecules to the alveoli through spontaneous breathing aided by an inhaler, thereby achieving therapeutic effects for non-respiratory diseases.

It is precisely because Chance Pharmaceuticals possesses these two micronization technologies that, during drug development, appropriate formulation methods can be selected based on the characteristics of the drug molecules. Furthermore, micronization via spray drying enables the processing of biological macromolecules—such as peptides, proteins, and nucleic acid-based drugs—which are typically incompatible with conventional jet milling methods. This capability gives Chance Pharmaceuticals a unique advantage in its product portfolio strategy.

Moving forward, Chance Pharmaceuticals will fully leverage its advantages in the development of powder inhalation products. Guided by actual clinical needs and starting with drug repurposing based on small-molecule products, the company will gradually extend its particle engineering technology to biologics, such as proteins, peptides, and small nucleic acids. This strategy aims to broaden the indications for inhalation therapy, enhance bioavailability and patient adherence, and provide global patients with safe, effective, and pharmacoeconomically viable products.

Currently, the team at Chance Pharmaceuticals comprises nearly 50 members. The management team consists of graduates from prestigious universities in Europe and the United States, with professional backgrounds in renowned pharmaceutical companies in these regions. They possess extensive hands-on experience in overseas scientific research, project management, and process scale-up, as well as substantial expertise in the domestic development, evaluation, manufacturing, and commercialization of new drugs.

Dr. Chen Donghao, Founder and CEO, formerly served as General Manager of China for the European multinational pharmaceutical company Chemo Group, and as R&D Director at Alnylam, a well-known North American publicly listed biopharmaceutical company. He is the principal inventor of more than 20 patents on inhalation drug delivery, and co-founded AIR (Advanced Inhalation Research) with renowned MIT professor Robert Langer, serving as its founding scientist.

Dr. Chen Donghao has 23 years of industrial experience in the field of inhalation products, particularly in the research and development, clinical trials, and pre-commercialization preparations for dry powder inhalers (DPIs). He has accumulated extensive end-to-end commercialization expertise spanning the entire product development lifecycle, including feasibility studies, formulation and inhaler device development, screening and optimization, animal models, process scale-up, and clinical studies.

Notably, Dr. Chen Donghao served as the CMC Lead for a preclinical to Phase II inhaled insulin project, where he led his team to successfully complete formulation screening and optimization of an inhaled dry powder preparation, process scale-up for industrialization, and related technology transfer. During his tenure at Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, a global leader in small nucleic acid therapeutics, he served as Director of R&D and Head of the clinical program for inhaled small nucleic acid therapy against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). He successfully led the team to achieve the world’s first application of inhaled small nucleic acids for the treatment of RSV, with Phase I clinical trials yielding expected outcomes. In the field of inhaled drug delivery, he possesses extensive end-to-end industrialization experience—from R&D and clinical trials to regulatory approval—for both respiratory diseases (such as asthma and COPD) and non-respiratory conditions (including central nervous system [CNS] disorders and antiviral therapies), demonstrating strong organizational leadership and corporate management capabilities.

Dr. Chen Lan, Co-Founder, holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Thermophysics from the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology. She has served as a Senior Visiting Scholar at the School of Pharmacy, University of Sydney, and at the Institute of Food Engineering, Stellenbosch University, South Africa. Dr. Chen is a member of the National Technical Committee on Standardization of Pharmaceutical Equipment and a member of the Expert Committee on Pharmaceutical Equipment. Her primary research focus is on “novel drug delivery technologies and devices.” She has published over 100 academic papers, including multiple highly cited papers with international impact, and holds more than 10 authorized invention patents in China, along with one PCT patent. With a solid foundation in powder technology, fluid dynamics, and mechanical structure design, she specializes in the development of advanced formulations involving “drug-device interactions.” Currently, she oversees the company’s product research and development and related activities.

Mr. Huang Peng, Co-Founder, holds a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California. With 18 years of experience in technology R&D and management, he previously worked at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a premier U.S. life sciences research institution, where he engaged in the development of advanced medical devices. He led the R&D of a neural visual imaging system that filled an international gap at the time. Currently, he oversees the company’s daily operations and capital liaison activities.

Co-founder Dr. Sun Meisheng graduated from the State Key Laboratory of Viral Genetic Engineering at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, possessing extensive expertise in laboratory operations and project management. He is responsible for new product development and external collaborations on R&D projects. Previously, he served at the National Engineering Research Center for Virus Biotechnology and held the positions of Director and Associate Researcher at the Beijing Jindike Institute of Biotechnology, where he engaged in pathogen diagnostics and vaccine R&D, established a respiratory virus surveillance system in the field of public health, and led the development project for granular universal vaccine adjuvants.

Prior to this round of financing, Chance Pharmaceuticals had already garnered favor from multiple renowned investment institutions, including: Delian Capital, China National Venture Capital, and Kaitai Capital.

Regarding the investment in Chance Pharmaceuticals, Mr. Li Hanxiong, Chairman of Yipinhong Pharmaceutical, stated: “Chance Pharmaceuticals is one of the few innovative companies in China that has mastered dry powder inhalation delivery technology. Its product portfolio aligns closely with our strategic focus on pediatric medications and treatments for chronic diseases in the elderly. Through this collaboration, we will broaden our business development. Furthermore, as an innovative pediatric pharmaceutical company, Yipinhong will effectively consolidate its advantages in treating respiratory diseases with high prevalence among children, thereby enhancing our core competitiveness in the field of pediatric disease treatment.”

Mr. Zhao Guobao, Senior Vice President of Delian Capital, stated as an investor who has supported Chance Pharmaceuticals since its angel round: “China’s inhalation drug market holds immense growth potential, creating numerous entrepreneurial opportunities in this field. However, inhalation formulations, particularly dry powder inhalers (DPIs), are high-end dosage forms with significant technical barriers, where Chance Pharmaceuticals possesses inherent advantages. Furthermore, Dr. Chen Donghao, the founder, is a seasoned professional with strong execution capabilities, an international perspective, and a profound sense of mission. We firmly believe that under his leadership and the team’s efforts, Chance Pharmaceuticals will achieve sustained growth and attain remarkable success.”

Dr. Chen Donghao, Founder and CEO of Chance Pharmaceuticals, stated: “In this financing round, Chance Pharmaceuticals has been fortunate to gain the recognition and favor of industrial capital. The introduction of Yipinhong Pharmaceutical as a strategic industrial investor will undoubtedly play a positive role in accelerating Chance’s independent and healthy development in the future. Chance can fully leverage the comprehensive resources of its strategic industrial investor to expedite the market commercialization of its products. Meanwhile, we believe that Chance’s unique differentiated development strategy will drive the company’s progress, maximize its distinctive strengths, enable faster and better development of innovative drugs with clinical value, provide patients with a variety of treatment options, and deliver maximum returns to investors.”

Yipinhong Pharmaceutical (stock abbreviation: Yipinhong; stock code: 300723) was established in 2002, with its headquarters located in Zhujiang New Town, Guangzhou. The company boasts extensive experience and a robust network spanning pharmaceutical R&D, manufacturing, and sales. Guided by its mission to tirelessly advance human health, Yipinhong focuses on therapeutic areas including pediatric medications and treatments for chronic diseases in the elderly. Adhering to the integration of pharmaceutical innovation and high-quality drug development, the company leverages a dual-drive strategy of “in-house R&D + external expansion.” It actively introduces high-quality domestic and international pharmaceutical projects and collaborates with specialized formulation platforms, while building advanced intelligent manufacturing facilities compliant with cGMP standards. These efforts aim to enhance formulation technologies and innovative drug R&D capabilities, optimize product portfolios, and accelerate internationalization.