Innovent Biologics Secures $260 Million Series D Financing, a Record in China's Biopharma Sector

On November 29, 2016, Innovent Biologics (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (“Innovent Biologics”) announced the successful completion of its Series D financing round, raising USD 260 million (approximately RMB 1.7 billion). The round was led by the Advanced Manufacturing Industry Investment Fund managed by SDIC Innovation Investment Management Co., Ltd. (“SDIC Innovation”), with participation from new investors including China Life Health Care Fund, Licheng Asset, Ping An Insurance, and Taikang Insurance Group, as well as existing investors such as Legend Capital, Temasek, and Hillhouse Capital.

As China’s new drug development begins to yield results, Chinese innovative pharmaceutical companies are increasingly gaining attention and recognition from major investment institutions both domestically and internationally. Innovent Biologics successfully completed its Series C financing round of $115 million (approximately RMB 750 million) on January 22, 2015. The amount raised in this latest Series D round ranks among the highest not only within China’s entire biopharmaceutical industry in 2016 but also among global non-IPO financings. To date, Innovent Biologics has completed four rounds of financing, totaling $410 million, with a funding scale that far leads the domestic biopharmaceutical sector.

It is reported that Innovent Biologics, founded in 2011, has been dedicated to the development and manufacturing of novel monoclonal antibody drugs. The company strives to develop and produce innovative antibody-based therapies for various complex and life-threatening diseases, thereby meeting the substantial demands of both domestic and international pharmaceutical markets. Dr. Yu Dechao, the founder, has nearly two decades of experience in innovative biopharmaceutical research. He is the only Chinese scientist who has invented two “Class I New Drugs” in China and successfully facilitated their development and market launch, including Conbercept, a well-known Class I biological innovative drug for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration. Leveraging Dr. Yu’s exceptional personal charisma and academic expertise, Innovent Biologics rapidly assembled a high-caliber team of R&D talents from both China and abroad. This achievement attracted significant capital investment, creating a virtuous cycle of talent, products, and capital, which has contributed to the company’s remarkably smooth growth trajectory.

Yu Dechao, Co-founder and Chairman of Innovent Biologics

Currently, Innovent Biologics has established a product pipeline comprising 12 novel antibody drugs, covering four major therapeutic areas: oncology, autoimmune diseases, retinal disorders, and cardiovascular diseases. Four of these products have been approved for clinical trials, with three having formally entered Phase III clinical studies. Given the substantial costs associated with biologic drug development, and with Innovent Biologics concurrently launching three Phase III clinical trials,This Series D financing round strengthens the financial foundation for Innovent Biologics’ new drug R&D, while also providing capital support to expand production capacity and ensure high-standard operations of its industrialization bases.

In fact, drug development, particularly the R&D of innovative biologics, is an extremely capital-intensive endeavor. Innovent Biologics’ successful completion of this large-scale Series D financing round will help attract investor attention to other domestic biopharmaceutical companies and will also serve to drive the development of China’s entire biopharmaceutical industry.

Regarding the successful completion of Series D financing, Dr. Yu Dechao stated, “As a young company, we have experienced rapid growth over the past five years. With strong support from investors and the government, and through the concerted efforts and close collaboration of our team, we have made significant progress in new drug R&D, industrialization base construction, and international cooperation, successfully achieving all our objectives. We are delighted that Innovent’s achievements and development potential have been recognized by new investors such as SDIC Innovation, China Life Insurance, Licheng Asset, Ping An Insurance, and Taikang Insurance Group. This financing will help Innovent Biologics better seize opportunities in the rapidly growing domestic biopharmaceutical market, accelerating the development and launch of high-quality, affordable premium biologics for the Chinese public.”

SDIC Innovation, the lead investor in this round, was established in July 2009 as a professional private equity management firm operating independently in accordance with market-oriented principles. With funds under management exceeding RMB 50 billion, SDIC Innovation manages capital from state-owned enterprises, private enterprises, social security funds, and insurance funds, making it one of the largest professional private equity management firms in China.

Mr. Lü Dazhong, Managing Director of SDIC Innovation, stated, “Innovent Biologics is a rising star in China’s biopharmaceutical industry. As the sector enters a golden age of rapid development, we are delighted to collaborate with a top-tier elite team in the field. Prior to making our investment decision, we conducted comprehensive and in-depth due diligence on Innovent’s novel drug portfolio, development capabilities, product quality, and manufacturing facilities. Based on our findings, we believe that Innovent Biologics possesses significant growth potential and is poised to become a world-leading biopharmaceutical company.”