CSPC Pharma (01093) signs a strategic cooperation and licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for the development of innovative long-acting peptide drugs.

CSPC PHARMA (01093) announced that the group has signed a strategic research and development cooperation and licensing agreement with global biopharmaceutical leader AstraZeneca to utilize the group's proprietary sustained release drug delivery technology platform and peptide drug AI discovery platform ("the platforms") to develop innovative long-acting peptide drugs. The group's sustained release technology can achieve the sustained release of peptide drugs, allowing for dosing intervals of once a month or longer. The products developed based on this platform are user-friendly, easy to use, support self-administration by patients, and can effectively improve treatment compliance for long-term medication users. Furthermore, the group's peptide drug AI discovery platform can rapidly design and screen candidate molecules for drug targets, and optimize them systematically in terms of efficacy, selectivity, and signaling bias. Under the terms of the agreement, the group will engage in comprehensive strategic cooperation with AstraZeneca in the discovery of innovative peptide molecules and development of long-acting delivery products. In addition to advancing the existing preclinical long-acting peptide pipeline, the group will also discover and develop other innovative long-acting peptide products for AstraZeneca. Apart from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, AstraZeneca will have global exclusive rights to the group's monthly injectable weight management product combination, including a clinically ready project SYH2082 (long-acting GLP1R/GIPR agonist, advancing to Phase I clinical trial), and three preclinical stage projects with different mechanisms of action aimed at providing more lasting therapeutic benefits for individuals with obesity and weight-related issues. The two parties will also collaborate on four additional new projects leveraging the platforms. In accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement, the group will grant AstraZeneca exclusive rights to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the authorized products globally (excluding mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan), while retaining the rights to the products in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. For AstraZeneca's use of the eight projects and the platforms, the group will receive a $1.2 billion upfront payment, as well as potential research milestone payments of up to $3.5 billion and potential sales milestone payments of up to $13.8 billion, along with double-digit percentage sales royalties based on annual net sales of the authorized products.