This inaugural edition of the InFocus Five Biotechs To Watch in China has selected companies at different stages of the biotech journey in order to showcase the diverse and multifaceted nature of Chinese biopharma innovation. While these companies are no doubt bound by a number of similarities, it is the differences that make their individual stories so exciting.
In 2020, the ‘Chinese biotech revolution’ is well underway, and with 1.4 billion people representing the second-largest healthcare market globally – and rapidly growing – there is no turning back. It is estimated that thousands of biotech companies have already been established in the past few years, with the majority clustered around the bustling cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen.
Flush with cash from both public and private sources, as well as aggressively supportive policies from the Chinese government, the homegrown biopharma sector has enjoyed an unprecedented level of growth in the past decade. With the majority of start-up entrepreneurs and founders boasting extraordinary scientific and industry credentials, a new breed of biotech companies with startlingly deep pockets, robust pipelines and portfolios, and a hungry global vision – has emerged in China.
