Yunnan Baiyao Invests $50M in Biopharma Firm Sinomab Bioscience as Cornerstone Investor

Hong Kong-based biopharmaceutical company SinoMab BioScience Ltd. ("Sinomab Bioscience") plans to raise as much as HK$1.75 billion ($223 million) in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Chinese pharmaceutical company Yunnan Baiyao Group Co. Ltd. ( "Yunnan Baiyao") announced that it would subscribe for $50 million of shares in the IPO.

SinoMab BioScience is dedicated to the research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of therapeutics for the treatment of immunological diseases. The company' s flagship product SM03 is a potential global first-in-target mAb against CD22 for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and is currently in Phase III clinical trial for rheumatoid arthritis in China, which has been recognized as one of the significant special projects of Significant New Drugs Development of the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan Period.

In addition, the Company possesses other potential first-in-target and first-in-class drug candidates, some of which are already in the clinical stage, with their indications covering rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, asthma, and other diseases with major unmet clinical needs.

SinoMab BioScience expects to rely on the capital support and market resource of Yunnan Baiyao and quickly expand the market through a ready-made network structure of marketing.

Founded in 1902, Yunnan Baiyao is one of those in the first batch of Chinese innovative enterprises and a time-honored brand in China. In 1971, its first factory was established. In 1993, the company was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange as the first listed company in Yunnan. "Yunnan Baiyao" represents a traditional Chinese Medicine formula used for wound healing, as a pain reliever and to stop bleeding.