$787 Million in 4 Days: Chinese Asset-Backed NewCos Fuel a Financing Surge at BIO 2026

Yesterday, the four-day BIO 2026 came to a close.

John Crowley, CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), pointed out that China regards biotechnology as a strategic priority through multiple national development plans, investing heavily in scientific infrastructure, industrialization/manufacturing capabilities, and research capacity. He believes that the optimal path to address competition is not decoupling or isolation, but rather deepening the construction of the U.S. innovation ecosystem and enhancing industrial competitiveness.

Coincidentally, during the session from the 22nd to the 25th, Chinese asset NewCo's overseas expansion ushered in a surge of official announcements.

If 2024 was a landmark year for NewCo deal signings, 2026 marks a pivotal year for NewCo's clinical development and fundraising.

In the NewCo narrative, if the Series A round—marking the emergence from stealth mode—is viewed as the foundational phase for structuring the venture, then the Series B round represents a "post-data-validation capital infusion," serving as the pivotal milestone to accelerate late-stage, global, multi-center, large-scale clinical trials.

On June 24, Ollin Biosciences, dedicated to providing optimal therapies for vision-related diseases, completed an oversubscribed Series B financing round of $330 million. Its core pipeline, sourced from Innovent and VelaVigo, includes the VEGF/Ang2 bispecific antibody OLN324 and the TSHR/IGF-1R bispecific antibody OLN102.

Notably, starting from Series B, high-caliber investors entered the market, continuously raising the valuation anchor for NewCo. Ollin's Series B investors include crossover investors, long-term capital providers, and sovereign wealth funds—the key pre-IPO lineup is essentially complete. The lead investors were new investor TCGX and founding investor ARCH; a16z Bio+Health, Blackstone Multi-Asset Investing, Commodore Capital, CPPIB, RA Capital Management, T. Rowe Price, and a leading sovereign wealth fund, along with other co-founding investors Mubadala Capital and Monograph Capital, participated as follow-on investors.

Why enter at the Series B stage?

First, it is on the eve of Ollin Biosciences advancing into large-scale clinical trials: OLN324 (a highly potent VEGF/Ang2 bispecific antibody with a smaller protein molecular structure and high molar dosage) will initiate global Phase III clinical development in diabetic macular edema (DME) or wet (neovascular) age-related macular degeneration (wAMD) in the second half of 2026. Other innovative molecules will also advance into clinical development this year.

Second, early-stage clinical data has given Ollin and its investors ample confidence. In a recently completed randomized, head-to-head, proof-of-concept JADE clinical study involving 164 patients, OLN324 demonstrated faster and more significant improvements in retinal anatomy, as well as numerically superior visual acuity benefits, compared to faricimab (Vabysmo), the first-line standard treatment for fundus diseases, in patients with DME and wAMD.

From another perspective, the collaboration with Ollin serves as a valuable addition for Innovent, a Big Pharma partner, accelerating the global launch of innovative drugs. Ollin has completed End-of-Phase II meetings with the FDA and EMA and is currently advancing discussions on the Phase III clinical trial protocol. Meanwhile, the partnership will facilitate patient recruitment for Innovent in China, South Korea, and other regions.

For biotech companies such as VelaVigo and Leads Biolabs, the substantial financing secured by NewCo will create a "ripple effect" on the market valuation and global recognition of the original innovator biotechs, gradually evolving them into partners capable of standing on equal footing.

Coincidentally, on June 25, Oblenio Bio, the joint venture between Leads Biolabs and Aditum Bio, completed an oversubscribed $62 million Series B financing, which will significantly advance the clinical development of LBL-051.

In terms of investors, unlike the Series A round, which was led by a fund specializing in NewCo incubation, the Series B round was led by Pfizer Ventures, with participation from Deep Track Capital, GV, and Aditum Bio, the founding investor of Oblenio.

From a pipeline perspective, the $62 million Series B financing aligns with the rapid advancement of LBL-051 toward the initiation of clinical trials. As Oblenio's sole asset, LBL-051 is a CD19/BCMA/CD3 trispecific T-cell engager antibody designed to treat patients with severe autoimmune diseases through immune reset. However, it should not be overlooked that Pfizer's lead investment itself serves as an endorsement of the CD19/BCMA/CD3 trispecific antibody in the field of autoimmune diseases.

In a recent exclusive interview with ENDPOINTS NEWS, Rod Wong, Chief Investment Officer at RTW Investments—which has spearheaded the formation of multiple NewCos—stated that under the current model for Chinese innovative drugs going global, the originator typically advances the project to the preclinical stage or early proof-of-concept phase. Subsequently, the more costly global Phase II and III clinical trials, FDA communications, CMC scale-up, commercial team building, and market launch and promotion are primarily undertaken by US MNCs, pharmaceutical companies, or newly established NewCos.

Therefore, Wong believes that the majority of the subsequent value of a new drug may still be captured by the party that secures overseas rights, because the fastest growth in the value of innovative drugs often occurs during the late-stage clinical development, regulatory approval, and commercialization phases.

Amid this trend, originator biotech companies have identified and implemented a wider range of strategic initiatives, such as diversified equity structures and Co-Co development models.

In a previous exclusive interview with VCBeat, Dr. Zhang Tong, Co-founder and CBO/CFO of VelaVigo, mentioned that the collaboration with Ollin Biosciences included not only cash transactions but also an equity stake in the partner company. There are two reasons for this: first, Ollin Biosciences has been established for over a year, with a relatively mature team structure and overall framework; second, VBS-102, as their second licensed product, holds a strategic position in their pipeline layout.

Therefore, based on confidence in VBS-102, VelaVigo may secure greater future returns by taking an equity stake while Ollin's valuation remains relatively low, rather than receiving cash payments. From Ollin's perspective, cash flow is a precious resource for any biotech company. Using a portion of equity value as transaction consideration represents a mutually beneficial approach to cooperation.

Furthermore, NewCo has expanded into mid-to-late stage assets. These more mature assets carry lower risks and enable faster exits, which often translates to higher upfront payments and profit-sharing arrangements—in 2025, Braveheart acquired HRS-1893, a Phase III cardiac myosin inhibitor from Hengrui, directly injecting this Phase III clinical asset into the NewCo. Hengrui received an upfront payment of $65 million (comprising $32.5 million in cash and $32.5 million worth of Braveheart equity) and a near-term milestone payment of $10 million upon completion of technology transfer, totaling $75 million; future milestone payments could reach up to $1.013 billion.

More directly, from NewCo structures to equity tie-ins and Co-Co models, the bargaining power of Chinese innovative assets and originators is further increasing.

On June 22, Bionyra announced its establishment and the completion of an oversubscribed $165 million Series A financing round, co-led by Jeito Capital and Sofinnova Partners. Arkin Bio, Sanofi Ventures, Sixty Degree Capital, Vives Partners, and Apollo Health Ventures participated as follow-on investors. Notably, Bionyra secured seed funding from Sanofi and Sofinnova Partners, and was co-founded with Dr. Frédéric Marrache, the former Head of R&D at Sanofi, who serves as the company's Chief Executive Officer.

Bionyra is developing next-generation mono-specific and multi-specific antibodies for next-generation inflammatory immunotherapies, targeting atopic dermatitis and inflammatory bowel disease. Its core assets include the TL1A monoclonal antibody BYN-002 (TL-001), the TL1A/IL-23p19 bispecific antibody BYN-003 (TL-003), and the IL-25 monoclonal antibody BYN-001 (NBL-023).

Bionyra has licensed BYN-002 and BYN-003 from TrueLab Biopharmaceutical and BYN-001 from NovaRock Biotherapeutics (CSPC's NovaRock Biotherapeutics), securing exclusive global rights outside of Greater China. Additionally, Bionyra is developing a pipeline of innovative preclinical assets, including certain candidates from TrueLab Biopharmaceutical.

Meanwhile, as NewCo and the transaction assets enter large-scale clinical trials and the pre-launch phase for new drugs, more diversified deal-making and exit pathways, such as acquisitions by MNCs and reverse mergers, have also emerged. Adopting the same "upfront payment + milestones + equity" deal structure, YolTech Therapeutics and Serapha Bio's NewCo went a step further by directly facilitating a reverse merger for public listing.

In June, Serapha Bio licensed SERP-01 (YOLT-202) from YolTech Therapeutics. Serapha obtained the rights to SERP-01 outside Greater China. YolTech Therapeutics received an upfront payment and a portion of Serapha Bio's equity, and is eligible for a total of over $2 billion in potential regulatory and commercial milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on net sales of SERP-01.

SERP-01 is being developed for the treatment of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD). YolTech Therapeutics retains the rights to develop and commercialize the product in Greater China and has initiated an investigator-initiated trial (IIT) at Shanghai Renji Hospital, with ongoing recruitment of subjects.

On the same day (June 23), Serapha officially announced a reverse merger with the Nasdaq-listed company Boundless Bio, simultaneously closing a private placement financing totaling $230 million. This private placement was led by RA Capital Management and RTW Investments as lead investors; notable participating investors included Janus Henderson Investors, Decheng Capital, Vivo Capital, Casdin Capital, LifeSci Venture Partners, Logos Capital, Balyasny Asset Management, and Eventide Asset Management.

Via NewCo, Chinese biotech companies have broken through the ceiling of single license-out deals and are deeply engaging in the global competition for innovative drugs.

As for the next phase of value distribution, the NewCo narrative must still return to the essence of biotech: clinical data, commercialization, and exit pathways.